Catalog
Silver 10 Asses Artumes series: octopus
| Issuer | Populonia |
|---|---|
| Year | 301 BC - 206 BC |
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| Value | 10 Asses |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Etruscan |
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| Reverse description | An octopus depicted in high relief, its sinuous tentacles curling dynamically across the flan in a highly stylised Etruscan rendering. The cephalopod motif, a common maritime symbol in ancient Italian coinage, fills the available field with its writhing arms, conveying a sense of movement characteristic of Populonian die-engravers of the period. |
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| Additional information |
Populonia, the only Etruscan city known to have struck its own coinage directly from locally smelted metal, drew its silver from the iron-ore processing operations at nearby Elba. The Artumes series — named for the Etruscan equivalent of Artemis — represents one of the later phases of Populonian silver production, issued as Roman expansion through Etruria was progressively closing off the city's political autonomy.
The octopus on these pieces likely signals maritime trade connections rather than any civic symbol, consistent with Populonia's role as a coastal entrepôt.