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Tetras
| Issuer | Lipara |
|---|---|
| Year | 425 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Bearded male head in right profile, identified as Aiolos, wearing a conical pilos helmet. The portrait is rendered in a bold, archaic-to-early-classical style, with clearly articulated beard and strong facial features. The effigy is centrally placed within a plain circular field, with no surrounding legend on the obverse. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse script | Greek |
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| Additional information |
Lipara — the largest of the Aeolian Islands off Sicily's northern coast — was a Cnidian colony whose bronze coinage is unusually early for the western Greek world. Most Sicilian cities didn't adopt bronze as a fiduciary currency until well into the fourth century; Lipara was striking it decades ahead of that shift, likely because the island's limited agricultural base and heavy reliance on communal fishing made small-denomination exchange a practical necessity rather than a political gesture.
CNS 5 places this among the earliest bronzes catalogued for the mint.