Catalog
16 Litrai
| Issuer | Syracuse |
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| Year | 214 BC - 212 BC |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | Laureate head of Zeus facing left, rendered in high relief with exceptional artistic refinement characteristic of late Syracusan die-engraving. The deity is depicted with a full, flowing beard and long wavy hair, adorned with an olive wreath whose leaves are precisely detailed. The musculature of the face and the treatment of the hair convey a commanding, majestic presence. The field is plain, with no legend or additional devices, allowing the portrait to dominate the flan. |
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| Reverse description | A winged Nike, helmeted and draped, drives a fast-moving quadriga to the left, brandishing a long spear in her right hand and holding the reins in her left. The four horses are shown in full gallop with energetic, overlapping forelegs conveying dynamic movement. The value mark ΞΑ (numerals denoting 16 litrai) appears in the lower right field below the horses. The ethnic legend ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ is inscribed along the lower exergual line, identifying the issuing city of Syracuse. |
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| Additional information |
These pieces belong to the final coinage of Syracuse as an independent city, struck during the siege by Marcus Claudius Marcellus that ended with the city's fall in 212 BC. The defense was prolonged well beyond Roman expectations largely due to Archimedes, whose war engines — cranes, catapults, and burning mirrors according to some ancient accounts — held the legions at bay for nearly three years. The mint kept operating through the siege, which is precisely why this issue exists at all.