Syracuse. Timoleon and the Third Democracy (344-317 BC). AR Drachm, c. 344-317 BC. In the name of the Sikeliotes

Lot # 110

Sicily. Syracuse. Timoleon and the Third Democracy (344-317 BC). AR Drachm, c. 344-317 BC. In the name of the Sikeliotes. Obv. Laureate female (Arethusa?) head left; three dolphins around. Rev. Pegasos flying left; ΣI below. HGC 2 1403 var. (ethnic); SNG ANS 511 var. (same). AR. 2.54 g. 16 mm. RRR. Extremely rare issue. Slightly rough surfaces. VF. There has been much debate about the presence of the ethnic ΣI on a series of Drachms bearing on the obverse the Pegasus and on the reverse a female head with a hair-band. The BCD catalog judges the abbreviation to be a Sicilian ethnic or from an uncertain Akarnanian mint, while Ravel specifically points to the mint of Syracuse. This idea seems further reinforced by this piece, which has on the reverse the type of a female head with dolphins around, quite similar to the Syracusan type HGC 2, 1403. The ethnic ΣI, however, is not the usual ΣY, so Ravel agrees with P. Orsi (“'Monete siceliote inedite o rare del R. Museo arccheologico di Siracusa' in Atti e memorie dell'instituto italiano di numismatica IV (1921), p. 39, 73 and pl. II, 73) that it should be an issue in the name of the Sikeliotes.

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Closing on: 2025-05-31 14:00:00 Roma time