Stater (Coin) Portraying Mithrapata

This coin originated in Lycia, an independent country that belonged to the Greek Empire, in a district that is now southwestern Turkey. This coin displays one of the earliest known examples of a human profile on coinage. The image portrays the dynast Mithrapata, whose facial features are strongly depicted, with a flat nose, high cheekbones, a thick neck, a beard, and short curly hair. The profile is set within an incuse square that also contains the Lycian insription "MITHRIPATI."