This three-volume second part of Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire (CPE II) is the welcome completion of Catharine Lorber’s masterful study and typology of coins struck by the Ptolemaic dynasty of Hellenistic Egypt. CPE updates Ioannis Svoronos’ 1904–1908 study, which established the basis for the modern study of Ptolemaic coinages, but this is no simple revision of types.[1] Instead, Lorber offers a reexamination of the politics, economics, and coinage of Ptolemaic Egypt that will be of interest beyond the field of numismatics.
Like the first entry in this series (published in 2018), CPE II combines typologies of gold, silver, and bronze coins minted in Egypt and Ptolemaic-held territories abroad with in-depth synthetic studies of the reigns of ten rulers (Ptolemy V Epiphanes through Cleopatra VII Thea Neotera). Lorber explains that CPE II diverges from Svoronos’ typology more fully than did its predecessor (I.1, p. ix–x), not only for the precious metals but also for the bronze coins in particular. These divergences range from minor corrections of attributions, types, or the order of series to more significant reinterpretations of the iconography, dates, locations of issues, and how the coins transform our understanding of Ptolemaic kingship, reigns, and society.[2] In some cases, these refinements are the result of newly available evidence; in others, the systematic study of new corpora (such as hoards) or use of methodologies (e.g., compositional analysis) allow for new conclusions to be drawn. Throughout, Lorber carefully lays out previous approaches and marshals an abundance of interpretative context before arriving at a reassessment or reinterpretation. As a result, it is easy to trace and comprehend the development of these ideas and interpretations; a happy side-effect is that this Forschungsgeschichte also captures some of the major developments in Hellenistic numismatics, economics, and historiography over the past century, in particular the impact that the studies of hoards and the metallurgical composition of the coins have played in transforming our study of Hellenistic coinages.
As previously noted by François de Callataÿ in his review of CPE I, it is difficult to imagine another scholar better positioned to undertake this project, given Lorber’s contributions to the field of Ptolemaic numismatics and history more broadly.[3] Her command of the numismatic material is complemented by an equally impressive command of a range of textual and material genres: a single page of synthesis draws both widely and deeply from Greek and Roman historians, papyri, ostraka, numismatics, and epigraphic sources. Lorber has published other comprehensive typologies coupled with analysis (including on Seleucid coins), but the carefulness and thoroughness of CPE II is truly notable.[4] Very significantly, in my opinion, her analysis consistently returns to consider the contexts of coin finds, such as we have them, including hoards; this approach is of fundamental importance in the historical introduction, in the individual type entries (which include hoards and notable provenanced examples), and in the listing of hoards in the appendices of volumes II and III. While typologies of this nature rely on robust museum collections (here, the American Numismatic Society), increasing movement to link exemplar illustrations of coins from museums with often less well-preserved examples found in archaeological contexts is not only necessary (and therefore very welcome here), but should also be the new standard in such analyses.
The division of the work into three volumes is practical: one volume (I.1) on historical synthesis and background information; one volume on the gold and silver coinage (I.2); and one slimmer volume on the bronze coins (I.3). Volume 1 consists of a historical overview of the reigns of the Ptolemaic kings and queens between Ptolemy V and Cleopatra VII. Each chapter covers a chronology of the reign (in some cases, co-reigns), and discusses significant historical events and thematic topics relevant to the period. Consistent sections—“Dynastic Chronology and Titulature,” “History of the Reign,” “Ruler Worship and Divine Kingship,” and “Coinage”–– are included in each chapter (except for the briefly ruling Berenice III and Ptolemy IX Alexander II). Different subsections emphasize various important threads, such as the dynastic machinations and internal tensions during Ptolemy IX Soter II’s reign (appropriately titled “Dynastic Conflict and Foreign Relations” and “Internal Affairs,” II.1, p. 210–227) or Cleopatra VII’s relationship with Rome (II.1, p. 303–312). The overview of each reign offers a synthetic context that allows the reader to better understand the shifting function of Ptolemaic money, not just in the economy, but also against the backdrop of cults and politics. As promised in the first volume’s introduction (II.1, p. xiii), economic themes are omnipresent across these sections, with in-depth analyses of wages, prices, and taxes throughout. Each chapter ends with treatment of the coins themselves, situating the iconographic types, denominations, and major numismatic developments within the rich historical context established above.
One of the major contributions of the volume (as noted by Lorber herself) is a long-form challenge to the theory of stepwise inflation “driven by changes in metallic or monetary ratios” (II.1, p. xiii–xiv). Lorber has already worked through some of these ideas in previous articles, but CPE affords her the opportunity to do so in a more holistic fashion, and across multiple denominations and reigns.[5] Through a sustained study of economic reforms beginning under Ptolemy VI (II.1, p. 112–124), Lorber develops an alternative to this theory. Noting the “remarkable” stability (II.1, p. xiii) of prices of wheat and other essential goods from the 160s–130s BCE, Lorber argues for direct state intervention in the Egyptian economy, which included fixing the price of wheat and instituting reforms to support exchange between silver and bronze currencies, now reckoned according to a new conversion ratio. Although I do not profess to be an expert in the Hellenistic economy, Lorber’s argument here is careful, well-supported, and to me at least quite convincing. This contribution to broader themes and dialogues around the Ptolemaic economy will be essential for future scholars to engage with in their own work.
The two catalogue volumes (II.2–3) continue the methodical commentary from the first on a range of numismatic aspects, from iconography to control marks and the occasions for striking. These volumes are easy to navigate and read, and comparison between analysis and discussion in Volume I with the relevant coins and entries in the other volumes is largely straightforward. In addition to entries for the coin types themselves, each of the two catalogue volumes contains helpful appendices of hoards (see above), typological and control symbols, and regnal dating indices as well as concordances for Svoronos. Catalogue entries are largely organized by mint and regnal year where known. Some deviation from this organization helps address examples for which the mint— e.g. Ammanitis between 198–169/8 BCE, II.2, pp. 47–54 and the Dionysian silver coins under Ptolemy IX and X, II.2, pp. 178–187—or the purpose for striking particular issues—e.g. coins minted to support the Fifth Syrian War, II.2, pp. 21–44—is speculative.
As is the practice with ANS publications, all three volumes are nicely produced, with an abundance of images, a clean and comprehensible layout, minimal errors, and generally clear, crisp pictures. Bronze coins, in particular, are notoriously difficult to photograph because of their small size, tendency to corrode, and dark surfaces; therefore, the clear plates in Volume 3 and relevant bronze-coin figures in Volume I are very welcome. Even the small number of bronze images which are unavoidably less clear (e.g. I.1, p. 58, Fig.1.10; I.1, p. 261, Fig.4.1; II.3, plate 6, no. B636) are sufficiently discernable to make out the type described. I have noted only a few mistakes.[6] Some minor quibbles (e.g., the lack of a map of mints or countermarks) will be addressed by their planned integration into the online “companion” database, Ptolemaic Coins Online (under “Maps” and “Symbols”).
To this point, scholars will inevitably use the Ptolemaic Coins Online database alongside the CPE series upon which it is based.[7] But this should indeed be alongside rather than instead of; as an online database, the functionality and content of PCO is geared toward exploration of the corpus for research or reference, without the rich contextual information and analysis included in CPE.[8] Serious study of any of these coins will necessarily include the physical volumes, as the treatment of each type and series is so thorough and the connections between the coins and larger Ptolemaic institutions so acutely argued that consultation of the relevant introduction for each series and cross-reference to its appearance in the historical introduction will always be fruitful.
In summary, Catharine Lorber’s completion of the Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire series is essential reading for any scholar interested in numismatics, the Hellenistic economy, and the Ptolemies in general. One hopes that, in addition, the production, clarity, and robustness of the material included in the analysis and syntheses of these coins, including explicit discussion of hoards, provenanced examples, and workshop processes, will be a model for future publications of this kind.
Notes
[1] Ioannis N. Svoronos, Τὰ νομίσματα τοῦ κράτους τῶν Πτολεμαίων (Athens: Sakellarios, 1904–1908).
[2] E.g., II.3, nos.1092–1095, here attributed to Ioppe or Ptolemais, rather than Cyprus as by Svoronos; sorting out various series among Alexandrian bronzes minted c.117–115 BCE (II.3, p. 67–68); discussion of numismatic evidence for the waxing and waning of power between competing members of the royal family (II.1, p. 211).
[3] François de Callataÿ, review of Lorber 2019 [BMCR 2019.10.08].
[4] See Arthur Houghthon, Catharine Lorber, and Oliver Hoover, Seleucid Coins: A Comprehensive Catalogue (New York and Lancaster, PA: American Numismatic Society and Classical Numismatic Group, Inc, 2008).
[5] See: Catharine Lorber, “The Price (TIMÊ) of the Silver Stater in Ptolemaic Egypt,” Ancient Society 47 (2017):19–61; Thomas Faucher and Catharine Lorber, “Bronze Coinage of Ptolemaic Egypt in the Second Century,” American Journal of Numismatics 22 (2010): 35–84. See discussion of this scholarship and the debate in Alessandro Cavagna’s La crisidello stato tolemaico tra inflazione e svalutazione del denaro (Milan: Cisalpino, 2010).
[6] For example: “subsequently a number if cities issued coinage in her name” (I.1, p. 102), rather than “of”. Note also that B694 is missing from the catalogue in volume III (II.3, p. 51–52), but reference to this type is retained in a footnote discussing a special bronze emission at Berenice for Ptolemy Eupator (II.1, p. 100, n.324).
[7] http://numismatics.org/pco/. As of March 2026, PCO currently covers the material from CPE I (Ptolemy I Soter to Ptolemy IV Philopator).
[8] See François de Callataÿ’s discussion of these tools in his review (n. 3, above).