Drachm of Ariobarzanes III 52 BCE-42 BCE

Curator: Here we have a Drachm of Ariobarzanes III, currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: It has a somewhat ominous feel, doesn't it? The worn metal and blurred figures suggest a weight of history, perhaps even a sense of loss. Curator: Indeed. Coins such as these were not mere currency; they were powerful tools of political propaganda. The portrait, though degraded, projects authority, whilst the reverse likely depicts a deity or royal symbol. Editor: The iconography then serves a clear purpose: to legitimize power. What I find interesting is how the object's materiality—its age, its damage—also speaks to the impermanence of that power. Curator: Precisely. The coin's visual language is undeniable, yet its physical state reveals the vicissitudes of history, reminding us that even the most potent symbols eventually erode. Editor: It's a sobering reminder of how time impacts everything. Curator: Yes, something to consider next time we look at art!