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#1 - Nemean Lion |
Hercules was born to Zeus, King of the great Olympian Gods, and a human woman, Alcmena. Overwrought with anger and jealousy by this affair, Zeus' wife, Hera, sent two serpents to kill this son. After defeating the great snakes, Hercules was sentenced to serve the mortal King Eurystheus, who set him twelve gruelling tasks - "The Twelve Labors of Hercules".
Gibraltar has always had a strong connection with the myths of Hercules; one of his famous "Twelve Labors" describes how he erects two rock pillars, one in Europe, and one in Africa - hence the Rock of Gibraltar, now known as one of the "Pillars of Hercules". This mythological hero has been featured on Gibraltar's circulating 5 pound coinage since 1988 and was only introduced to the 2 pound coin with this series that was issued in 1997, 1998, 1999 and 2000. These coins all include the new effigy of Her Magesty Queen Elizabeth II, designed and sculpted by Ian Rank-Broadley F.R.B.S., F.S.N.A.D.
These 2 pound coins are all from Gibraltar, and
are dated 1997, 1998 or 1999. These Uncirculated coins are made from
"Bi-metal base metal", and
appear two tone. The center section is the typical silver color of
Copper-Nickel, and the outer ring is a gold tone. Each coin weighs approximately 12 grams. Below
is a photo that is approximately actual size of 28.40 mm:
| Labor #1 - Hercules and the Nemean Lion | |
| The first labor of
Hercules was to kill the Nemean Lion. The Lion was sent by Hera to the
region of Nemea, which it routinely ravaged. It lived in a cave and its
hide was impervious to harm by weapons. Hercules fired his bow upon the
lion, but his arrows glanced off its body. He used his club, but this also
had no effect. Realizing the futility of his attacks, Hercules approached
the lion and strangled it to death with his bare hands. This beautiful coin depicts
Hercules in his battle with the Nemean Lion, and it is dated 1997.
Please note: We have only 1 of these coins left in stock! |
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| Labor #2 - Hercules and the Lernean Hydra | |
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The second labor of
Hercules was to kill the Lernean Hydra. Easy, right? Not only
was Lerna surrounded by swamps and quagmires, but this Hydra had nine heads,
all of which were capable of killing you with poisonous venom. As if
this wasn't bad enough, every time you cut off a head, two would grow back
in its place, and one of the nine heads was immortal! Fortunately, if
you apply fire to the stump immediately after severing a head, no new heads
would appear. After cutting off all of its heads, Hercules buried the
immortal head so it couldn't bite anyone out of spite for losing its body.
How thoughtful! This beautiful coin depicts
Hercules in his battle with the Lernean Hydra, and it is dated 1998. |
| Labor #3 - Hercules and the Ceryneian Hind | |
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The third labor of
Hercules was to bring back (to King Eurystheus) the Hind of Ceryneia.
So, what is a Hind, anyway? A Hind is a female red deer, and would it
have been not nearly so great sounding a Labor if it was called the "Ceryneian
Deer". The bad news is that this wasn't just an ordinary deer. It happened to be the favorite pet deer of the Goddess Diana. It had golden antlers and hooves of bronze. To avoid angering Diana, Hercules had to capture the deer alive. Unfortunately, not only did he injure the deer, but Diana found out. Some fast talking by Hercules kept him from becoming just another trophy on Diana's wall. In the end, she healed the deer and let Hercules take it back to Mycenae. This beautiful coin depicts
Hercules bringing back the Ceryneian Hind, and it is dated 1998. |
| Labor #4 - Hercules and the Erymanthean Boar | |
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The fourth labor of
Hercules was to bring back the Erymanthian Boar, alive, to King Eurystheus.
His battle with the boar wasn't exactly the most heroic story, so this part
of the Hercules story includes a sub-plot about a bunch of Centaurs and a
wine jar. After Hercules manages to extract himself from the centaur complication, he climbs Erymanthus mountain, captures the boar in a net and brings him back to the King. This beautiful coin depicts Hercules in his battle with the Erymanthian Boar. Sorry - This Item is Out of Stock
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| Labor #5 - Hercules and Augeas' Stables | |
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The fifth labor of
Hercules was to clean up the stables belonging to King Augeas. Of
course, these were no ordinary stables. King Augeas happened to be the
biggest rancher in all of ancient Greece, and he owned thousands of cattle,
goats, sheep and horses. To make this Labor worthy of legend, Hercules
had to clean the stables in a single day!
To give Hercules more incentive (as if he needed any), Hercules managed to convince King Augeas to give Hercules one tenth of his cattle if Hercules managed to clean out the stables in a single day. How did he do it? He used a really big shovel -- just kidding! Hercules tore huge hole in both sides of the stable, and diverted two nearby rivers to flow through the stables for a little while. As you might have expected, King Augeas changed his mind and reneged on the deal. Hercules did the ancient Grecian equivalent of taking the King to court, and was rewarded with the cattle. This coin depicts Hercules diverting the water
through Augeias' Stables, and it is dated 1999. |
| Labor #6 - Hercules and the Stymphalian Birds | |
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The sixth labor of
Hercules was to shoot the man-eating birds that had taken over the marshes
near the town of Stymphalos. Hercules fist used a pair of bronze krotala (similar to castanets) given to him by the Goddess Athena to make a racket loud enough to scare the birds to flight. Once aloft, Hercules used the birds for target practice. This coin depicts
Hercules in his battle with the Stymphalian Birds. Sorry - This Item is Out of Stock |
| Labor #7 - Hercules and the Cretan Bull | |
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The seventh labor of
Hercules was to capture the mad bull that terrorized the island of Crete. How did a bull get onto the island of Crete, you may ask. It just so happens that this particular bull was sent to King Minos by the sea-god Poseidon. Minos had promised to sacrifice what ever creature Poseidon sent, but King Minos thought this bull was too handsome to kill, so he sacrificed a different bull in its place. Poseidon was mad at King Minos for breaking his promise, so he made the bull rampage all over Crete, and caused King Minos' wife, Pasiphae, to fall in love with the animal. After a little activity not suitable for children, Pasiphae gave birth to the Minotaur, which had the head of a bull and the body of a man. King Minos had to shut the Minotaur in a labyrinth beneath the palace. With the Minotaur locked safely underground, Hercules captured the bull and brought it back to King Eurystheus. End of story? Not quite. You see, King Eurystheus ended up releasing the bull, which then proceeded to wander around Greece and terrorize people. This coin depicts Hercules in his battle to capture the Cretan Bull. Sorry - This Item is Out of Stock |
| Labor #8 - Hercules and the Mares of Diomedes | |
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The seventh labor of
Hercules was to capture the man-eating mares of King Diomedes of the
Bistones. Were there any animals in ancient Greece that weren't
man-eating? To do this, Hercules travels to Bistonia and captures the horses. Before he can get them back out to sea, the Bistones pursue Hercules and fight to get the horses back. After Hercules kills King Diomedes, he manages to get the horses back to King Eurystheus. And what does the King do with these man-eating horses? What else - he sets them free to wander around Greece! This coin depicts
Hercules in his battle with Diomedes over his Mares. Sorry - This Item is Out of Stock |
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