Catalog
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Nomos
| Issuer | Tarentum |
|---|---|
| Year | 450 BC - 440 BC |
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| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| Obverse description | Taras, the mythological founder of Tarentum, depicted nude and seated to the right astride a dolphin, his left arm outstretched. The figure is rendered with fine early Classical modeling of the musculature. Stylized wave patterns fill the lower field beneath the dolphin, evoking the marine setting. The ethnic inscription TAPAS appears in retrograde Greek letters in the left field. |
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| Mint | Tarentum (Taras), Calabria |
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| Additional information |
Tarentum's nomoi from this decade were struck under Spartan cultural influence — the city was founded by Partheniai, a disputed underclass from Sparta, around 706 BC, and its coinage long reflected that heritage through the Taras-on-dolphin type. By the mid-fifth century the city was among the wealthiest in Magna Graecia, commanding the trade routes of the heel of Italy. The Vlasto collection alone catalogued dozens of die variants within this narrow type, indicating sustained, high-volume production rather than episodic issue.