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Æ20
| Issuer | Olympia |
|---|---|
| Year | 340 BC - 330 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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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 script | Greek |
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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.