PONTOS. Amisos. Time of Mithradates VI Eupator. Circa 85-65 B.C. Æ. 13.84 gm. 24 mm. Head of Perseus right, wearing Phrygian helmet / Pegasos grazing left; ΑΜΙΣΟΥ and monogram in exergue. HGC 7, 239. Malloy 33b. SNG BM Black Sea 1212-1217 var. (monogram). Good Very Fine; beautiful glossy black-green patina; minor adjustment marks as made; well centered and sharply struck, of a superior style; very attractive, a choice example of the type.

Perseus, a son of Zeus and one of the greatest heroes in Greek mythology, is most renowned for beheading the Gorgon Medusa and using her severed head, which could turn onlookers into stone, as a mighty weapon in his later adventures. He slayed the sea monster Cetus, rescuing Andromeda, who became his wife. One of their sons was Electryon, the father of Alcmene, whose union with Zeus produced the most iconic Greek hero ever, Heracles, making Perseus both Heracles' great-grandparent and his half-brother.This reverse type is reminiscent of the early tetradrachms of Mithradates VI.