Catalog
1⁄16 Shekel - Abdashtart I Sidon
| Issuer | Sidon |
|---|---|
| Year | 370 BC - 358 BC |
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| Value | 1⁄16 Shekel |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | A Phoenician war galley advances to the left, its hull detailed with a row of shields along the side and oarsmen at their benches with oars extended; below the vessel, a zigzag pattern conventionally represents the sea. The composition is rendered in the compact, stylized manner characteristic of Sidonian silver coinage of the fourth century BC. A single Phoenician letter appears in the field. The design occupies the full flan, reflecting the technical constraints of the small denomination. |
|---|---|
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| Mintage | ND (370 BC - 358 BC) - (fr) Betlyon 27 |
| Additional information |
Abdashtart I — rendered in Greek sources as Straton I — ruled Sidon during a period of carefully managed autonomy under Achaemenid Persian overlordship. His reign saw Sidon reach its commercial and political peak among the Phoenician city-states, and his close ties with Athens, documented in ancient literary sources, made his court something of a cultural bridge between the Greek and Persian worlds. The fractional silver denominations of this period circulated heavily in local trade along the Levantine coast.