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Litra
| Issuer | Katane |
|---|---|
| Year | 450 BC - 430 BC |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Silver |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Bearded head of the river god Selinos facing right, rendered in archaic Sicilian style with boldly modeled features, a full flowing beard with striated locks, and a broad, aged visage. The effigy occupies the majority of the flan, characteristic of small silver coinage of this period. No legend appears on the obverse. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse description | An upright winged thunderbolt depicted at center, flanked on either side by a shield, all enclosed within a circular retrograde Greek inscription reading ΚΑΤΑΝΕ. The design is typical of Katane civic coinage of the mid-fifth century BC, combining Dionysiac and Zeusian iconographic elements within a compact composition suited to the small litra denomination. |
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| Additional information |
Katane's silver litrai of this period were struck under Sikel cultural influence, the city having been refounded by Sikel populations after the expulsion of its Chalkidian Greek settlers around 461 BC. The coinage reflects that transitional civic identity — a Greek monetary unit produced for a community reasserting local control following decades of colonial domination.
The litra denomination itself was native Sikel in origin, adopted into the Greek monetary system of Sicily as a practical interface between indigenous and colonial economies.