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What species of bird is depicted on this coin?

enter image description here

http://www.artic.edu/aic/collections/citi/images/standard/WebLarge/WebImg_000100/139651_846511.jpg

Thanks in advance for your help!

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well I don't think this is really a biology question given that it is probably quite an "artistic" impression of the bird, but some clues as to the coins origin would help people hazard a best guess at most. – rg255 Feb 20 at 22:51
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The coin shows Ptolomey I Soter I, a ruler of ancient Egypt c. 367 BC – c. 283 BC. This Source suggests that it is an eagle standing on a thunderbolt. This is corroborated here and again here so this seems most likely. This question isn't really answerable from within our site scope, however, see the species identification tag wiki. Hope the above helps though! – Rory M♦ Feb 21 at 1:16

closed as not a real question by Rory M♦ Feb 21 at 1:17

It's difficult to tell what is being asked here. This question is ambiguous, vague, incomplete, overly broad, or rhetorical and cannot be reasonably answered in its current form. For help clarifying this question so that it can be reopened, see the FAQ.

1 Answer

up vote 1 down vote

It said to be an eagle.

It looks like a Ptolemy V (204–181 BC):

http://www.bonanza.com/listings/-DD-G-068-Ptolomy-V-Octadrachm-COPY/16293418?gpid=21297750541&gpkwd=&goog_pla=1&gclid=CMWBpbOaxrUCFYx_Qgod6TsA9w

it looks to be a pretty standard motif of that era:

Alexander III Great 336 BC Greek Coin

From: http://www.worthpoint.com/worthopedia/alexander-iii-great-336bc-greek-coin-150614256

I agree that this is not really a biology question.. but what they hey.

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this is why we need new answer notifications when writing comments! – Rory M♦ Feb 21 at 1:19
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I know a professional ichthyologist who once had to propose an identification for a fish painted on a cave wall. Surely it is more difficult than identifying from a real specimen, a photo or a scientific drawing, but in some case, artistic representations have a precise biological source of inspiration, and it is meaningful to try identifying it. If we didn't already knew what species of bird is represented here: en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… I think it would make sense trying a identification. – bli Feb 21 at 9:35

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