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Tetradrachm
| Issuer | Potidaia |
|---|---|
| Year | 479 BC - 450 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | HGC 3.1#641 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Quadripartite incuse square with deeply recessed triangular sections formed by two diagonal divisions crossing at the centre, creating a distinctive windmill or hourglass pattern. The incuse is boldly struck with sharp, raised ridges at the intersecting diagonals, a hallmark of early fifth-century BC Greek coinage technique. The fields within each triangular section show the typical flat, slightly irregular surfaces of hand-struck hammered coinage. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Potidaia's coinage reflects the city's unusual political position: a Corinthian colony on the Macedonian coast that paid tribute to Athens while maintaining Corinthian magistrates. This tetradrachm falls within a period bracketed by two upheavals — the Persian sack of 480 BC and the city's revolt against Athenian control around 432 BC, which triggered one of the immediate crises preceding the Peloponnesian War. The Athenian siege that followed lasted three years and reportedly cost Athens 2,000 talents, a drain Thucydides considered financially significant even by Athenian standards.