Catalog
Tetras
| Issuer | Menainon |
|---|---|
| Year | 200 BC - 100 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Bare head of Herakles facing right, rendered in the typical Sicilian Greek style with curly hair and strong facial features. The effigy is set within a dotted border that frames the entire field. The coin surface exhibits a dark green-brown patina consistent with its bronze composition and considerable antiquity. No legend appears on the obverse. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse lettering | MENA INΩN (Translation: Menainon) |
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| Additional information |
Menainon, located in the interior of Sicily near modern Mineo, was a Sikel settlement that transitioned through Carthaginian and then Roman influence during the third century BC. By the time this bronze was struck, the city had lost whatever political autonomy it once held — these late Sicilian civic bronzes were largely fiduciary issues permitted under Roman provincial tolerance rather than expressions of independent authority. The tetras denomination, worth three onkiai, was the workhorse of small Sicilian transactions.