Greek history from this time until the Roman conquest is known as the Hellenistic age. During this period it became fashionable to place a portrait of the ruler on the coins. Male rulers of this line were all named Ptolemy and most females of the family were named Cleopatra. Confusion in the minds of students is virtually certain. Modern historians have applied Roman numerals to separate these people sharing a name but coins were never marked in this manner.
Hellenistic portraits are often brutally realistic portraying the real faces that ruled their world.
The right fields on both sides bear countermarks or bankers marks in this case signifying that the coin had been tested and found to be good by the person applying the mark. Other countermarks were used to revalue an issue or extend its acceptability to a different region. These marks varied from simple punches to ornate designs of extreme artistic merit in their own right. Many male rulers of this line were named Seleukos or Antiochos so, as with the Ptolemies, students need to use care to keep the names and numerals straight. Making matters better or worse, depending on one's point of view, many of these kings are also named by Epithets or descriptive nicknames.