2026-01-30 Fri

HERA, one of the twelve Olympian deities residing on Mount Olympus, occupies a significant position within ancient Greek religion. Initially tricked by her brother Zeus into MARRIAGE, she ascended to the role of queen of the gods. As the goddess of marriage, women, and family, she is also the protector of women during childbirth. In Roman tradition, Hera is identified with the goddess Juno.

Traditionally, Hera is depicted as loyal to Zeus, yet she is also renowned for her jealousy and vengeful nature, particularly directed toward her husband's numerous lovers and their offspring. She played a prominent role in the narrative of the Trojan War, aligning with the Achaeans and collaborating with other deities to seek the downfall of Troy, fueled by her resentment towards the Trojan prince #Paris for selecting #Aphrodite as the most beautiful goddess over her.

In representations of Greek art, Hera is often illustrated as a noble and beautiful woman, adorned in long, flowing robes and a distinctive crowning stephanos, a type of wreath. Her image began appearing on coins as early as the 5th Century BCE. The coin depicted on this post is a 410 BCE–390 BCE Silver Stater from Olympia in Elis, an ancient site located in #Greece's Peloponnese peninsula, which hosted the inaugural #Olympic Games in the 8th century BCE. This particular coin, weighing 11.87 grams, features an obverse depicting the head of Hera facing right, wearing a stephanos embellished with palmettes, alongside the Greek letters ‘HPA,’ signifying ‘Hera.’ The reverse illustrates a vertical flaming thunderbolt with the Greek letters ‘FA,’ denoting ‘Faleion,’ or ‘of the Eleans,’ all encircled by an olive wreath.

Interestingly, the people of Elis held in high regard two principal deities from the ancient Greek pantheon: Zeus and Hera. The #temple of Hera was constructed adjacent to that of Zeus in Olympia. Coins minted in Olympia were produced from two primary facilities, subsequently categorized as the ‘Zeus Mint’ and the ‘Hera Mint’ by some #numismatics experts. These two distinct mints issued coins for each Olympiad, which occurred once every four years. To learn more about Zeus refer to the following link:

Greek And Roman Deities On Coins-7