archaicwonder:

Greek Stater from Sikyon, Peloponnessos, c. 350-330 BC

Obverse: Chimera advancing left, right paw raised, SE below, wreath above. Reverse: Dove flying left, N below beak; all within laurel wreath.

Numismatically, Sikyon (Sicyon) was the most productive city of Peloponnese. Its coinage appeared in the beginning of 5th century BC and greatly increased at 400 BC. Their high production continued till the times of the Roman conquest in 146 BC. On their coins they usually use the symbol of the Dove, a symbol of spirit and the Chimaera, the fire-breathing mythological monster which was killed by the hero Bellerophon and Apollo, the chief deity of the city.

Sikyon was located in the northern Peloponnesus between Corinth and Achaea on the territory of the present-day regional unit of Corinthia, Greece. More about ancient Sikyon…

archaicwonder:

Greek Tetradrachm from Myrina, Aeolis c. 155-145 BC

Struck on an especially large medallic flan. The obverse one of the great masterpieces of Greek numismatic art.

A laureate head of Apollo right. On the reverse, Apollo Grynios standing right, holding branch and phiale; monogram to left, omphalos and amphora at feet to right; all within laurel wreath. 

There was a Temple dedicated to Apollo Gryneion 4.5 miles away from Myrina in the city of Gryneion, which was an ancient center for prophecy.

The ruins of Myrina are located on the Beriki Tepe hill, on the left bank of the Pytikos River. Its site is believed to be occupied by the modern Sandarlik at the mouth of the Koca Çay in Turkey.

archaicwonder:

Pegsus and Swastika, Silver Stater of Corinth c. 550-500 BC

Coin shows Pegasos (Pegasus), with curved wing, flying to left, a koppa below. On the reverse, an incuse in the form of a swastika.

Very rare. This is one of the finest of all archaic Corinthian staters known. Instead of walking, as on the earliest examples of this type, Pegasos is clearly flying here since all his hooves are diagonal and not flat on the ground. The swastika patterned incuse on the reverse is actually a very ancient solar symbol, found in many parts of the world, and has no political meaning.

The ancient city of Corinth was founded in the 10th century BC on the remnants of a Neolithic settlement. The town was extremely well situated on the isthmus that joins the Peloponnesus with the mainland of Greece. This location gave Corinth the possibility to control all roads connecting the two parts of Greece. As a result, Corinth soon developed into one of the most important trade centers of the ancient world.

Thanks to this vivid trade, Corinth belonged to the first western towns to take up coinage, supposedly around the middle of the 6th century BC. The motif on the coins of Corinth was Pegasus, the legendary winged horse – legend had it that Pegasus, scratching with his hoof on the rock Acrocorinthus, had released the spring of Peirene, the fountain that supplies Corinth with fresh water. The reverse of the early Corinthian coins showed a simple square, the so-called “quadratum incusum.” Soon however, the square was transformed into a swastika, as can be seen on this coin.

kamillamacaulay:

History meme:  3 men -  ALCIBIADES was an Athenian general (ca. 450-404 B.C.) who served Athens and its enemies alike and caused damage to every state that employed him.

Alcibiades was the son of a brilliant but unstable politician; wealthy, handsome, and aristocratic, he was brought up in the house of his guardian, Pericles, and groomed for a political career. He had every possible advantage and in addition possessed exceptional charm and ability as a conversationalist, thinker, and diplomat. Entering politics in the wartime atmosphere of the Peloponnesian War, he represented youth and became an intimate of the teacher of young men, Socrates. In 420 B.C., during an uneasy peace with Sparta, by clever tactics he drove Athens into an alliance against Sparta which failed completely and caused Athens to conduct an ostracism. Even in the permissive society of his day, Alcibiades became known for his extravagant and reckless behavior, and the distrust he aroused wrecked his career. In 415 B.C. he was the prime mover of the proposal to attack Syracuse and, together with Nicias and Lamachus, commanded the naval expedition to Sicily. He was soon recalled on charges of having profaned the Mysteries and of having mutilated religious statues (hermae) in a drunken spree on the eve of the fleet’s departure. Alcibiades escaped, reached Sparta, and became a Spartan military adviser. Once there, he fell into disfavor with the Spartan king whose wife he seduced. Subsequently he transferred his services to Persia and then to Athenian antidemocratic extremists, with whom he planned a coup d’etat in Athens. When he failed to obtain Persia’s aid, they discontinued to support him and seized power in Athens without him. After the Peloponnesian War, Sparta demanded his head, and he was assassinated while a fugitive in Phrygia. 

archaicwonder:

Greek Gold Wreath of Oak Leaves and Flowers, possibly from Attica, Greece, late 2nd - early 1st century BC

In ancient Greece,  oak leaves symbolized wisdom, and were associated with Zeus, who according to Greek mythology made his decisions while resting in an oak grove.

Gold wreaths such as this one derive their form from wreaths of real leaves worn in religious ceremonies or given as prizes in athletic and artistic contests. Because of their fragility, gold wreaths were probably not meant to be worn. They were dedicated to the gods in sanctuaries and placed in graves as funerary offerings. Although known in earlier periods, gold wreaths became much more frequent in the Hellenistic age, probably due in large part to the greatly increased availability of gold in the Greek world following the eastern conquests of Alexander the Great.