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Chalkon
| Issuer | Delos |
|---|---|
| Year | 308 BC - 167 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A stylized palm tree with spreading fronds occupies the central field, rendered frontally as a symbol closely associated with Delos, the legendary birthplace of Apollo and Artemis. The ethnic inscription ΔΗΛΙΩΝ is divided across the lower field, with letters flanking the base of the palm trunk. The composition is compact and boldly struck, consistent with the artistic conventions of Hellenistic civic bronze coinage. |
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| Reverse lettering | ΔΗΛΙΩΝ |
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| Additional information |
Delos occupied an unusual position in the Aegean economy — technically a sacred island under rotating Athenian and later Amphictyonic administration, its local bronze coinage circulated primarily within the sanctuary economy surrounding the sanctuary of Apollo rather than through conventional trade networks. The chalkon denomination was the workaday unit of that system, used for small transactions among pilgrims, merchants, and the island's considerable population of resident foreigners.
In 166 BC, Rome handed Delos back to Athens as a free port, expelling the native Delians entirely. Local autonomous bronze issues effectively ceased at that point.