changes introduced by this Commission; but, that they were extensive there can be little doubt. It is not, therefore, improbable that a complete revision of the coinage may have taken place at this time, and certainly from the evidence afforded by the coins themselves, some such revision must be inferred.

One of the most important of these novelties seems to have been the institution for the first time of a coinage in gold, the first coins in this metal being small pieces. Obv. Head of Herakles in lion's skin. Rev. Incuse square, divided into four parts, with a female head in the centre. Wt. circ. 18 grains. Supposing the proportionate value of coined gold to coined silver to have been 1: 15,19 these pieces would correspond exactly in value to the silver tetradrachm. The half also exists. Obv. Head of Pallas.

Rev. Incuse square, within which is a wheel. Weight, 9 grains = 1 didrachm. (Pl. III. 9, 11.)

To these must be added a small gold piece. Obv. ZYPA. Head of Pallas. Rev. Gorgon-head. The weight of the British Museum specimen is 10-4 grains. This is probably a gold obol of Attic weight (11.25 grains), in which case it is equivalent to 12 litræ, or 2 drachms. (Pl. III. 10.)

With these earliest gold coins of Syracuse may be compared certain pieces of Gela, the authenticity of which has, however, been suspected by some, weighing 27 and 18 grains,20 which, if true-and the weights are in their

19 Mommsen, ed. Blacas, tom. i. ch. ii. p. 131.
20 Obr.-Horseman, r., wearing "Phrygian" cap.

Rev.-TEAAZ. Half bull, swimming, r. ; above, grain of
barley. N. 45; wt. 27 grs.

Obv.-ENEINOɅ.. Female head, 1.

Rev. FEAAZ. Half bull, swimming, 1. N. 45; wt. 18 grs.

favour-clearly belong to the same system. Gela was destroyed in 405. Agrigentum also, which was destroyed in 406, issued gold coins which seem to be struck on the silver standard, as they correspond in weight to Attic diobols, and have the proper marks of value; the two specimens in the Museum weighing 204 and 19.5 grains.21 The existence of gold at these two places, before their destruction by the Carthaginians, renders it highly improbable that Syracuse would be without a contemporary coinage in that metal. The date of its introduction at all three cities is probably about B.C. 412.

In the Syracusan silver, the following remarkable innovations were introduced after the departure of the Athenians.

The style of the obverse becomes highly ornate, and great variety is apparent in the arrangement of the hair of the goddess, while on the reverse the horses of the chariot are always in high action.

About this time the

Sicily.

begins to be seen on coins of

It is difficult to fix the exact date when it came into universal use, 22 but, for convenience sake, we may be allowed to attribute such as have ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΟΝ to the Democracy B.C. 412-406, and those with ZYPAKOZION to the next period.

Particular attention seems to have been now devoted

21 Obr.-AKP. Eagle devouring serpent; beneath, . . Rev.—ΣΙΛΑΝΟΣ. Crab. N. 4; wt. 20·4 grs.

22 The N occurs on certain coins of Segesta struck before its destruction in B.C. 409, at Himera before B.c. 408, at Agrigentum before B.c. 406, on tetradrachms of fine style with the horses of the quadriga in high action. Also at Kamarina and Gela before B.C. 405. But its use seems to have been only exceptional before B.C. 406, after which it became general. This is but little anterior to the archonship of Eukleides, B.C. 404, when the Ionic forms were legally adopted at Athens.

to the coinage, and its beauty was regarded as an object of public interest. Hence the die-engravers were permitted for the first time to sign their work, and we frequently find that the two sides of the same coin are by different artists. Eumēnos, Soson,23 and Phrygillos were the engravers employed principally upon the obverses of the coins which I would place before B.c. 406, and Eumenos, Evænetos, and Euth upon the reverses

during the same years.

The charioteer, almost always male up to B.c. 415, is now often apparently female, and in some specimens is evidently the goddess Persephone herself, for she carries a flaming torch.24 (Pl. IV. 10 and V. 5.)

On one very beautiful reverse by Euth . . . the quadriga is driven by a male winged dæmon.25 (Pl. III. 14.)

Drachms and half-drachms occur; the former signed by Eumenos. Obv. Female head, right; Rev. Leukaspis with shield and short sword (Pl. III. 15); the latter, Obv. Female head, left; hair in sphendone; Rev. Quadriga, &c., with a chariot wheel in the exergue; apparently the work of Evænetos.26 (Pl. III. 16.)

The drachm with the head of Pallas full-face, and Leukaspis on the reverse, and the hemi-drachm with similar obverse, and a quadriga on the reverse, are apparently by Eukleides, and somewhat later. These belong to the Dionysian period with .27 (Pl. V. 6, 7.)

23 A tetradrachm with the signature ΣMENN sold at the Sambon sale, is now in the cabinet of the late H. N. Davis, Esq. It bears a strong resemblance to that by Eumenos which is figured on Pl. III., No. 12.

24 R. S. Poole, Coins of Kamarina, p. 6.

25 Raoul Rochette. Graveurs des Monnaies Grecques, Pl. ii. 16. 26 Mus. Hunter., T. 53, xx., xviii., xix.

27 Mus. Hunter., T. 53, xvii., xxi.

VI. TIME OF DIONYSIOS AND HIS SUCCESSORS,

B.C. 406-345.

To the tyranny of Dionysios must be classed the finest of all the Syracusan coins, both in gold and silver.

The relative value of gold, as compared with silver, still remains as high as 1 : 15, if we may draw this conclusion from the weights of the gold coins which seem to belong to this period: these are 90 and 45 grains, respectively equal to 1350 and 675 grains, i.e. 100, and 50 litræ or 2 and 1 dekadrachms.28

These pieces are of very great beauty; the larger of the two has ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΟΝ, the last example of O for Ω. Obv. Head of Arethusa (?) left; Rev. Herakles and the lion. Probably by Kimon, as the British Museum specimen has the portion of a signature which has been read K1.29 (Pl. IV. 1.)

The 50 litra piece, Obv. Young male head (Anapos ?); Rev. Free horse; has on both sides EYPAKOZION. The type is more appropriate to the Democracy than to the tyranny of Dionysios; possibly the dies were engraved shortly before his accession, but as it has the it is not likely to be much earlier than B.C. 406. (Pl. IV. 2.)

The silver coins of the reigns of Dionysios and his successors are doubtless the most splendid specimens of the numismatic art which exist, for luxury of style and

28 A gold coin, Obv., Head of Arethusa; Rev., Herakles and the lion is engraved in the Annuaire de Numismatique, tome iii., 1868, Pl. iii., from the Greau collection, having two globules, marks of value, on the obverse. These I take to represent two dekadrachms.

29 The specimen in the Paris cabinet has EY and is probably by Evænetos. We may therefore on this ground reasonably place these two coins in the second period, which their style alone would justify.

delicacy of work. They do not, however, exhibit that purity and simplicity which characterize the best art of Hellas and Ionia.30 The engravers' names which occur most frequently upon the obverses are Evænetos, Eukleides, Kimon, and Parme . . . The first two of these are often combined with reverses by Eumenos. Eukleides and Kimon excelled in the representation of the full-face. The head of Pailas by Eukleides (Pl. IV. 10), and that of Arethusa by Kimon (Pl. IV. 9), are now justly celebrated, especially the latter, while the former appears to have been so great a favourite at the time as to have been adopted for the drachms and half-drachms of this period, the reverses of which are, respectively, Leukaspis, and quadriga. (Pl. V. 6, 7.) The litræ bear more resemblance to the works of Kimon or Parme (Pl. V. 9, 10.) There is also a drachm of peculiar style, the reverse of which is signed by Kimon. (Pl. V. 8.) The hemilitræ, or half-obols, which seem to fall into this period, have on the reverse a wheel, generally with two dolphins in the lower quarters, a type which is reproduced on the copper. (Pl. V. 11, 14.) There is also a quarter-litra, or trias, equal to three ounces of copper, wt. 28 grains, with a cuttle-fish on the reverse, as on the litræ, but surrounded by three globules to designate its value. (Pl. V. 12.) This small silver piece may have supplanted the copper triantes with marks of value described on p. 15. (Pl. III. 7.)

The dekadrachms of this period are numerous, but seem to be all the works of the two artists Evænetos and Kimon, although they are not all signed. (Pl. IV. 3, 6, 7.)

R. S. Poole, Num. Chron., N.S., vol. iv. p. 236. “On Greek Coins as illustrating Greek Art.”