Abydos (AD 222-235) AE 33 - Severus Alexander

Severus Alexander, 222-235 AD. AE33 - Medallion (23.00g, 7h). IMP C IMVIP SEV ALEXANDRO AVC, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right / ABΥΔH-NΩ-N, Nude Leander accompanied by Eros with torch, swimming right, crossing the Hellespont (Dardanelles), bust of Hero on top of light tower of Sestos facing left, holding oil lamp in her outstretched right hand to bring light in to the darkness of the night over the Hellespont. Very Fine.

Hero and Leander were one of the most famous lovers in ancient mythology. Hero was a priestess of Aphrodite who lived in the city of Sestos (on the Dardanelles). Leander was a young man from Abydos who lived on the opposite Asian side of the strait. Leander fell in love with Hero, but his parents were against a marriage. He would swim every night across the Hellespont to be with her secretly. Hero always would light a lamp at the top of her tower to guide her lover his way. However, one stormy night the waves tossed Leander in the sea and the breezes blew out Hero's light. Leander lost his way and drowned. When Hero saw his dead body, she threw herself over the edge of the tower to her death to be with him.