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Hemilitra / Hexonkia
| Issuer | Naxos (Sicily) |
|---|---|
| Year | 461 BC - 430 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Reverse description | A kantharos (wine cup) with two prominent loop handles rendered in relief at the center of the field, set upon a short stem and stepped base. Flanking the vessel on either side are two curved arcs, each composed of three pellets, representing the six onkiai (units) of the hexonkia denomination. The design is bold and well-centered for the small flan, with a plain field surrounding the motif. No legend or inscription is present, and the overall execution is consistent with the archaic Greek engraving tradition of Sicilian mints. |
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| Mint | Naxos, Sicily |
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| Additional information |
Naxos was the oldest Greek colony in Sicily, founded by Chalcidian settlers around 734 BC, and its coinage reflects a city that punched well above its size. This tiny fractional piece dates to the period following the expulsion of Ducetius and the restoration of Naxian autonomy in 461 BC — a brief window of civic revival before the city was razed by Dionysius I of Syracuse in 403 BC, its population enslaved or dispersed. The mint never reopened. Every coin from this series is therefore a terminal document of a destroyed polis.