Silver drachm from Knossos, depicting the labyrinth

            The front (obverse) of this coin depicts the head of the goddess Hera facing left. The back (reverse), shown here, depicts a square labyrinth.

The city of Knossos drew its civic icon from the myth of the Minotaur. The monster, born to the queen of Crete, was hidden away in a labyrinth, or maze. Yearly he devoured youths and maidens until, with the help of a ball of string, the hero Theseus made his way to the center of the labyrinth. There he killed the Minotaur and used the string to find his way out of the maze. The story was so famous that anyone seeing the labyrinth on this coin knew that Knossos was its source.

The name of Knossos is written in Greek below the labyrinth. The Greek letters Alpha - to the left of the labyrinth - and Rho - to the right (it looks like a 'P', but that's a Greek, not Latin, letter) - probably stand for the word ἄργυρος ('argyros') which means silver. 

Greek, minted in Knossos, Crete, ca. 350-220 BCE. Silver.

Art Institute of Chicago (ARTIC 1922.4914)

Taken on: May 11, 2025

Tags:

ancient

archaeology

drachm

silver

Knossos

Crete

Minotaur

labyrinth

Hera

money

Art Institute of Chicago

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Sets appears in: • Art Institute of Chicago (ARTIC) • Ancient coins

Groups appears in: • The Ancient World • History is All Around Us more » • Classical Antiquity • Arqueologia - Archaeology • Classical Antiquity: Art & Architecture • World Archaeology & Arts/ΑΡΧΑΙΟΛΟΓΙΑ&ΤΕΧΝΕΣ-Rea • World Archaeology • The Classical World • Smarthistory • Museums of the world and their works. • The Museum Project • Ancient / Archaeological • World Art Museum • Canon EOS Cameras. • Namaste Traditional Cultures! • Art Institute of Chicago (ARTIC) « less

Camera: Canon EOS R7, f/6.3, 1/160 sec, 135mm, ISO 6400 (more info) (hide info)

Camera:	Canon EOS R7
Lens:	RF-S18-150mm F3.5-6.3 IS STM
Aperture:	f/6.3
Exposure Time:	0.006 sec (1/160)
Focal Length:	135mm
ISO:	6400
Exposure Bias:	0 EV
Flash:	No Flash
Exposure Program:	Program AE
Exposure Mode:	Auto
Metering Mode:	Multi-segment
White Balance:	Auto
Color Space:	sRGB
Software:	Adobe Photoshop Camera Raw 17.4 (Macintosh)
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