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Dekadrachm - Dionysios I
| Issuer | Syracuse |
|---|---|
| Year | 405 BC - 367 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Litra |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Mintage | ND (405 BC - 367 BC) |
| Additional information |
The great Syracusan dekadrachms of this period were not routine civic coinage — they were almost certainly struck to pay mercenaries. Dionysios I fought a grinding series of wars against Carthage beginning in 409 BC, and the logistical demands of maintaining a professional mercenary force required exactly this kind of high-denomination, high-weight silver payment. The coins functioned more as bullion instruments than pocket change.
The engravers responsible for the finest examples — Kimon and Euainetos chief among them — signed their work on the dies, an almost unprecedented practice in the ancient world and one that speaks to how differently Syracuse valued its mint artists.