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Obol
| Issuer | Pheneos |
|---|---|
| Year | 370 BC - 340 BC |
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| Composition | Silver |
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| Obverse description | Draped bust of the youthful Hermes facing right, wearing his characteristic petasos (broad-brimmed traveller's hat) slung behind the neck and suspended by a strap tied at the throat. The rendering is typical of the Arkadian regional style of the fourth century BC, with fluid lines conveying the god's youthful energy. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Ram standing right in profile, rendered with naturalistic musculature, occupying the central field. The abbreviated ethnic inscription ΦΑΡ (or ΑΡ), denoting the city of Pheneos, appears in the lower field below the animal's legs, flanked by additional letters in the upper field. The plain, undecorated field emphasises the clarity of the type. |
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| Additional information |
Pheneos was an Arcadian city in the remote Pheneatike valley, geographically isolated enough that its coinage circulated largely within regional networks rather than broader Peloponnesian trade. The city joined the Arcadian League following its foundation in 370 BC, and this obol almost certainly belongs to that federated period, when smaller Arcadian poleis briefly asserted enough political confidence to strike their own silver alongside the League's common coinage.
The BCD Peloponnesos collection reference places this piece among a small, tightly documented group — Pheneos produced no large-denomination silver in any quantity, making even minor fractions the primary evidence for its mint activity.