Coin of Gotarzes II c. 40 - 51

Curator: This is a coin, quite small actually, crafted by Gotarzes II. The coin resides here at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: There's something haunting about the image on the coin, the lines almost violently etched. It feels like looking into someone's troubled past. Curator: Coins were more than just currency; they were symbols of power and propaganda. The image on the obverse, likely Gotarzes himself, would have projected an image of authority. Editor: It's fascinating how such a small object could carry so much weight—literally and figuratively—with the symbols representing sovereignty and control. Curator: Indeed. The weight is also in the cultural memory it holds. The images on the coin invoke continuity and project stability. Editor: It really makes you think about the stories this little coin could tell, if it could talk. What hands it passed through and the shifting tides of history. Curator: It reminds us that even seemingly insignificant objects can offer profound insights into the human condition. Editor: Absolutely. It's a tiny window into a world and a time so vastly different from our own, yet somehow connected.