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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;TIF, post: 1880988, member: 56859&quot;]-----</p><p><br /></p><p>Additional tidbits about these tetradrachms:</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art243.htm" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.bestofsicily.com/mag/art243.htm" rel="nofollow">Agathokles</a>&nbsp; is described as a &#039;tyrant of Syracuse&#039; and he certainly was aggressive and murderous in his earlier years.&nbsp; When things calmed down he proclaimed himself king of Syracuse.&nbsp; During his reign things were apparently more peaceful and history regards him more kindly.</p><p><br /></p><p><a href="http://www.math.nyu.edu/~crorres/Archimedes/Coins/Arethusa.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.math.nyu.edu/~crorres/Archimedes/Coins/Arethusa.html" rel="nofollow">Arethusa</a> was a water nymph who was transformed into an underground stream emerging as a freshwater spring on the Sicilian island of Ortygia, the future site of Syracuse.&nbsp; Ovid wrote of her in <a href="http://poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/Metamorph5.htm#_Toc64106321" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://poetryintranslation.com/PITBR/Latin/Metamorph5.htm#_Toc64106321" rel="nofollow">Metamorphoses</a> (AD 8).&nbsp; English Romantic poet Percy Bysshe Shelley wrote a lovely poem about her in his 1820 composition, <a href="http://eighty8words.wordpress.com/2009/01/26/arethusa-a-poem-by-percy-bysshe-shelley/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://eighty8words.wordpress.com/2009/01/26/arethusa-a-poem-by-percy-bysshe-shelley/" rel="nofollow">Arethusa</a>.&nbsp; Roman poet Virgil also wrote of her in book III of his 19 BC epic, <a href="http://classics.mit.edu/Virgil/aeneid.3.iii.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://classics.mit.edu/Virgil/aeneid.3.iii.html" rel="nofollow">The Aeneid</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p>The triskeles symbol is interesting.&nbsp; Its earliest use is seen three millennia before appearing on Syracuse coins.&nbsp; Initially a religious symbol of the sun, likely representing Baal.&nbsp; Agathokles adopted it as his emblem, in theory because the triangular shape resembles the shape of Sicily.&nbsp; For an in-depth review, see <a href="http://www.academia.edu/3760013/The_Triskeles_on_Ancient_Greek_Coins" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://www.academia.edu/3760013/The_Triskeles_on_Ancient_Greek_Coins" rel="nofollow">The Triskeles on Ancient Greek Coins</a>, an article by John Voukelatos, 2011.&nbsp; Later Sicilian depictions include a gorgon face in the center and that emblem is featured on the flag of Sicily.</p><p><br /></p><p><img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/5/5d/Map_of_region_of_Sicily,_Italy,_with_provinces-it.svg/350px-Map_of_region_of_Sicily,_Italy,_with_provinces-it.svg.png" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" />&nbsp; <img src="http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/8/84/Sicilian_Flag.svg/200px-Sicilian_Flag.svg.png" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>The quadrigia&nbsp; on these coins are shown in a 3/4 perspective.&nbsp; One writer indicated that this shows the chariot as it is turning left during a race.&nbsp; You can see the turned heads and bunched-up legs of the near horses as their gait shortens to enter the turn, with the far horses still in near-full gallop.&nbsp; Whether this was done to fit the whole scene on a limited canvas or through artistic intent, I don&#039;t know.</p><p><br /></p><p><img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /><img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" /><img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie1" alt=":)" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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