Coin of Perge under Philip II 247 - 249

Curator: Looking at this "Coin of Perge under Philip II," I'm struck by the sheer weight of history it carries in its 7.74 grams. What's your immediate impression? Editor: Decay! It feels like holding a whisper from the past, almost a ruin itself. I imagine the countless hands it passed through. Curator: Indeed. Note the deliberate composition: the effigy of Philip II on one side and the depiction of Artemis Pergaia on the other. The structure speaks volumes about power and faith. Editor: I see the power, sure, but it's faded, softened by time. The goddess feels less about dogma and more like some primal force now. Curator: A valid interpretation. Semiotically, the coin signifies authority and divine blessing, but that meaning is inevitably altered by its current state. Editor: And it's that alteration, that aging, that gives it soul! Almost makes you forget the politics, doesn't it? Curator: Perhaps. Though, as we reflect, let's not overlook how the visual language of the time shaped our perception of governance and divinity even now. Editor: Right, right. Still, it's nice to dream a little about where it's been before the Harvard Art Museums.