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<p>[QUOTE="romismatist, post: 7357653, member: 44106"]Magna Grecia, in particular ancient Calabria and Lucania, had several cities with dolphin rider reverses, not just Taranto (Taras, later Tarentum). These include Poseidonia (Paestum), Tiati, Bitonto, Baletium and Brundisium (Brindisi). On the coinage of Brundisium, like Taranto, it is Phalanthos or Taras riding the dolphin, not Eros. Unlike the more majestic and well-executed Tarentine silver coinage, these cities often had more crudely crafted (and poorly preserved) bronze coinage which circulated locally.</p><p><br /></p><p>According to legend, Phalanthos was the leader of a group of Parthenes in Sparta who led a revolt against the ruling class which failed. He consulted the Oracle of Delphi on what to do, who directed him found a colony in the Ionian region of Puglia, where Sparta already had minor commercial operations. Prior to sailing there, he was shipwrecked on the Crisaean Sea and was rescued by a dolphin who returned him to shore carrying him on his back. In the historic records, he appears as an early government founder within both Taras and later Brundisium. </p><p><br /></p><p>The first coinage of Brundisium was struck around 215-214 BC, and was most likely initiated to finance the military operations of the first Macedonian War. In total, there were five different nominals, all in bronze and all struck on the Roman ponderal system: uncia, biuncia, triuncia, quadruncia and semiuncia (semis). There were also five different series struck, with coinage continuing until the end of the second century BC, when the region was absorbed by Rome and began using Roman coinage. Others speculate that the semis coinage continued until the end of the Social War, around 89 BC.</p><p><br /></p><p>Here's my semis from Series F (auction house pictures, as I am not especially good at photography):</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Obv:</b> Head of Neptune right. "S" (sign of value = semis) below head, trident to left below nape of neck, Nike above, crowning him (not visible on my example)</p><p><br /></p><p><b>Rev:</b> Youth riding dolphin left, holding Victory which crowns him in left hand and lyre in right, "S" behind. "BRVN" ethnic below dolphin.</p><p><br /></p><p>This last semis series (Series F) has an extensive array of magistrate monograms and symbols displayed on either the obverse or reverse; this one has a club (?) on the reverse to the left of the dolphin's head.</p><p> </p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1282645[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="romismatist, post: 7357653, member: 44106"]Magna Grecia, in particular ancient Calabria and Lucania, had several cities with dolphin rider reverses, not just Taranto (Taras, later Tarentum). These include Poseidonia (Paestum), Tiati, Bitonto, Baletium and Brundisium (Brindisi). On the coinage of Brundisium, like Taranto, it is Phalanthos or Taras riding the dolphin, not Eros. Unlike the more majestic and well-executed Tarentine silver coinage, these cities often had more crudely crafted (and poorly preserved) bronze coinage which circulated locally. According to legend, Phalanthos was the leader of a group of Parthenes in Sparta who led a revolt against the ruling class which failed. He consulted the Oracle of Delphi on what to do, who directed him found a colony in the Ionian region of Puglia, where Sparta already had minor commercial operations. Prior to sailing there, he was shipwrecked on the Crisaean Sea and was rescued by a dolphin who returned him to shore carrying him on his back. In the historic records, he appears as an early government founder within both Taras and later Brundisium. The first coinage of Brundisium was struck around 215-214 BC, and was most likely initiated to finance the military operations of the first Macedonian War. In total, there were five different nominals, all in bronze and all struck on the Roman ponderal system: uncia, biuncia, triuncia, quadruncia and semiuncia (semis). There were also five different series struck, with coinage continuing until the end of the second century BC, when the region was absorbed by Rome and began using Roman coinage. Others speculate that the semis coinage continued until the end of the Social War, around 89 BC. Here's my semis from Series F (auction house pictures, as I am not especially good at photography): [B]Obv:[/B] Head of Neptune right. "S" (sign of value = semis) below head, trident to left below nape of neck, Nike above, crowning him (not visible on my example) [B]Rev:[/B] Youth riding dolphin left, holding Victory which crowns him in left hand and lyre in right, "S" behind. "BRVN" ethnic below dolphin. This last semis series (Series F) has an extensive array of magistrate monograms and symbols displayed on either the obverse or reverse; this one has a club (?) on the reverse to the left of the dolphin's head. [ATTACH=full]1282645[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]
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