(Aug 19, 2012)
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Item Information
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| Obverse | Stag grazing, ΦΑΝΕΩΣ (retrograde) | | Reverse | Two incuse punches | | Obverse | Forepart of stag | | Reverse | Square incuse punch | | Obverse | Land tortoise | | Reverse | inscription AΙΓ[INAΤΟΝ] ([of the] Aeg[inetans]) "Aegina" and dolphin | | Obverse | head of the nymph Arethusa , surrounded by four swimming dolphins and a rudder | | Reverse | a racing quadriga , its charioteer crowned by the goddess Victory in flight | | Obverse | a portrait of Athena , patron goddess of the city, in helmet | | Reverse | the owl of Athens, with an olive sprig and the inscription "ΑΘΕ", short for ΑΘΕΝΑΙΟΝ, "of the Athenians " | | Obverse | Laureate head of Alexander Severus , KAI(ΣΑΡ) MAP(ΚΟΣ) AYP(ΗΛΙΟΣ) ΣЄY(ΑΣΤΟΣ) AΛЄΞANΔPOΣ ЄYΣЄ(ΒΗΣ) | | Reverse | Bust of Asclepius | 26mm (4.73 grams)
Early Athenian coin, depicting the head of Athena on the obverse and her owl on the reverse - 5th century BC
Attic Red-figure pottery , kylix by the Triptolemos Painter , ca. 480 BC ( Paris , Louvre )
:237 Various multiples of this denomination were also struck, including the trihemitetartemorion (literally three half-tetartemorioi) valued at 3/8 of an obol
Image Denomination Value Weight
Dekadrachm 10 drachmas 43 grams
Tetradrachm 4 drachmas 17.2 grams
Didrachm 2 drachmas 8.6 grams
Drachma 6 obols 4.3 grams
Tetrobol 4 obols 2.85 grams
Triobol (hemidrachm) 3 obols 2.15 grams
Diobol 2 obols 1.43 grams
Obol 4 tetartemorions 0.72 grams
Tritartemorion 3 tetartemorions 0.54 grams
Hemiobol 2 tetartemorions 0.36 grams
Trihemitartemorion 3/2 tetartemorions 0.27 grams
Tetartemorion 0.18 grams
Hemitartemorion ½ tetartemorion 0.09 grams Archaic period
These coins were made of electrum , an alloy of gold and silver that was highly prized and abundant in that area
Obv. Sea turtle with large pellets down center
Rev. incuse square with eight sections
As such coins circulated more widely, other cities began to mint coins to this "Aeginetan" weight standard of (6.1 grams to the drachm), other cities included their own symbols on the coins
Athenian coins, however, were struck on the "Attic" standard, with a drachm equaling 4.3 grams of silver
These coins, known as "owls" because of their central design feature, were also minted to an extremely tight standard of purity and weight
Gold 20- stater of Eucratides I , the largest gold coin ever minted in Antiquity
The design for the obverse was carved (in incuso ) into a block of bronze or possibly iron, called a die
The design of the reverse was carved into a similar punch
Another commemorative coin, a silver dekadrachm known as " Demareteion", was minted at Syracuse at approximately the same time to celebrate the defeat of the Carthaginians
On the obverse it bears a portrait of Arethusa or queen Demarete
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