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Æ20
| Issuer | Olympia |
|---|---|
| Year | 340 BC - 330 BC |
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| Composition | Bronze |
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| Obverse description | Laureate head of Zeus facing left, rendered in archaic Greek style with broad, somewhat rough features. The laurel wreath is visible across the brow, and the hair falls in thick, stylized locks behind the head. The portrait occupies the full field of the flan with no border or legend. The die work is bold but somewhat worn, consistent with a mid-4th century BC Elean bronze issue. |
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| Reverse description | Eagle standing left with head turned back to the right, wings folded against its body, rendered in strong relief with clearly delineated feathers across the wing panel. The bird stands on a plain ground line, its talons gripping firmly. The design fills the reverse field with no border legend, typical of Olympian civic bronzes associated with the sanctuary of Zeus at Elis. |
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| Additional information |
Olympia functioned not as a city-state but as a sanctuary administered by the Eleans, and coins struck under Olympian authority were tied directly to the festival economy surrounding the quadrennial games. Bronze issues of this period served local commercial needs — vendors, pilgrims, and the considerable logistical infrastructure supporting tens of thousands of visitors — rather than any broader interstate circulation. The sanctuary's political status shifted repeatedly in the fourth century as Elis and Arcadia contested control of the site.