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6 Litrai - Fifth Democracy
| Issuer | Syracuse |
|---|---|
| Year | 214 BC - 212 BC |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Reverse description | Nike, the winged goddess of victory, depicted in rapid motion driving a biga (two-horse chariot) to the right; she is shown in three-quarter view, her drapery billowing behind her as she extends her right arm to wield a whip over the galloping horses. The exergue is separated by a ground line beneath the horses' hooves. The ethnic legend ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ appears in the exergue, while the magistrate's monogram or abbreviation ΧΑΡ is inscribed in the upper field above the chariot. A beaded border frames the design. |
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| Mintage | ND (214 BC - 212 BC) |
| Additional information |
Syracuse's Fifth Democracy lasted barely two years before Rome ended it permanently in 212 BC, following a siege that killed Archimedes. These coins were struck under existential military pressure, with Roman forces under Marcellus encircling the city from 214 BC onward. The Syracusans held out partly due to war machines Archimedes engineered for the defense — the coinage of this period is literally concurrent with that siege.
SNG Copenhagen 881 is the standard reference anchor for this type. Survivors are scarce; the city's fall and subsequent Roman plundering left little occasion for hoarding.