In the Eye of the Lion: Iconological Observations on Frontal Depictions of Lions on Ancient Coins

Abstract

This article provides an overview of the most important coin types depicting frontal lions from the Greek Archaic period to the first century BC. The spear-biting lions are not included in this paper as they form the subject of a separate study. Starting from the ancient written tradition, explanations are offered based on the effect of the lion’s gaze, which is repeatedly mentioned in ancient texts. With the addition of the respective reverses and modes of representation, it is possible to identify references to religious cults: Apollo, Artemis, Athena, Hera and Heracles. But rulers also used frontal lion images for specific purposes. To express the solar aspect of Apollo, frontality seemed the most appropriate. A particularly close connection between the lion and Loxías has been demonstrated for Rhegion. The example of Samos shows that an autocrat could choose the emblem of a “frontal lion’s head” – probably also to suggest solar qualities. Under Achaemenid influence however, the lion regularly became the victim of the ruler – albeit a particularly dangerous and fearsome one, which was emphasised through its frontality. The same goes for Lysimachus, whose choice of image is astonishingly close to Pliny’s reflex, which focuses entirely on the lion’s sight. It is also shown that lion masks are often associated with the deeds of Heracles, which also gave rise to other coin images in which the use of frontality brought special nuances of meaning, for example the illustration of special effort or a narrative connection between two coin images. In one case, a frontal lion leaping out of a rectangle was associated with the cult of Athena. Another group of frontal lions may have had an apotropaic-demonic character, mainly conveyed by the eyes fixed on the observer. Here we can see a connection with the Gorgoneion. As for the frequent image of devouring lions, a biblical source suggests that the animals were particularly irritable and dangerous during this process. Finally, it was recommended that lions and leopards should be carefully separated, with leopards being particularly suitable for depicting the ‘man-destroying’ god Dionysus in frontal perspective.