Cover of new book by Kovacs
LANCASTER, Pennsylvania—Ancient Armenian coins constitute an integral aspect of the Armenian heritage. Very often, they are the only original documents from early Armenian kingdoms and dynasties that have survived to our time, and are therefore of great importance when reconstructing Armenia’s early history.
The publication of Armenian Coinage in the Classical Period, a new book written by professional numismatist Frank L. Kovacs of California, will therefore be greeted with pleasure by Armenian coin enthusiasts, scholars, and the public alike. The eagerly awaited study has just been released by Classical Numismatic Group (CNG) of Pennsylvania, the nation’s leading ancient coin firm, in its series Classical Numismatic Studies, No. 10. The author has several published articles on Armenian numismatics to his credit and has been compiling material for this monograph for over a decade.
Although many new and enigmatic ancient Armenian coins have been discovered in recent years, it has been a decade since the last major monograph on the topic was published, and two decades since a catalog of the entire field appeared. The need for a revised and updated reference for these coins has been apparent for several years.
According to CNG, the discovery of numerous previously unknown coins while long-standing misattributions have hampered the best efforts of researchers in the field of Armenian numismatics. Kovacs attempts to address these problems and present ancient Armenian coins as reliable source documents.
Silver tetradrachm of Tigranes the Great (95-56 B.C.) that sold for $18,000 US in 2011.
Building on the work of earlier Armenian scholars (Dr. Paul Bedoukian, Yeghia Nercessian, Khachatour Mousheghian and others), Armenian Coinage in the Classical Period begins with the earliest known issues of Samos, after circa 275 BC, through the reign of Tiridates II, to circa AD 252, and includes all territories ruled by Armenian monarchs, or by any king or client king who ruled any territory called “Armenia.â€
