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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;ValiantKnight, post: 2588558, member: 44210&quot;]My foray into Greek coins continues with this silver obol from the ancient city of Miletos, in the region of Ionia (in Turkey). I had wanted one of the earliest Greek coins for a decent price and of the several I found this one was the best of the bunch (I have a couple of Kyzikos silvers but they are slightly younger than this type). While the lion is off-center, the head still remains on the flan, which is what saved this one from being rejected (some others had the lion a little more centered but more worn and with not as much detail). There are three major varieties of this type, which this <a href="http://oldestcoins.reidgold.com/miletos.html" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="http://oldestcoins.reidgold.com/miletos.html" rel="nofollow">page</a> does a great job in detailing. Mine seems to be the first and earliest variety, from about 525-494 BC. The reverse depicts some sort of floral, star, or sun pattern. I like the idea that the website puts forth that a sun pattern on the coin might represent Apollo (patron god of Miletos), so I am inclined to believe this is what it is on the reverse.</p><p><br /></p><p>More info on Miletos <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miletus" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Miletus" rel="nofollow">here</a>.</p><p><br /></p><p>May sound pretty silly but it was after watching 300: Rise of an Empire one night (wasn&#039;t the first time I saw it though) that made me want a nice coin from this era. I know its a flashy and rather fictionalized portrayal of the events of the Persian invasion of Greece in the early 5th century, but it was still able to give me a boost in interest in ancient Greek coins</p><p><br /></p><p><b><u>Miletos</u>, Ionia</b></p><p>AR twelfth-stater</p><p><b>Obv</b>: Forepart of lion left, head turned</p><p><b>Rev</b>: Floral, star, or sun pattern in incuse square</p><p><b>Mint</b>: Miletos</p><p><b>Date</b>: 525-494 BC (approx.)</p><p><b>Ref</b>: SNG Cop 952</p><p><b>Size</b>: 8 mm, 1.17 gr</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]563310[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>(If the wrinkles from the background are distracting I apologize. My black backgrounds are objects I usually have laying around nearby, and this one didn&#039;t seem so bad from a distance. Last time I&#039;ll be using this one!)</p><p><br /></p><p>Map showing the location of Miletos and the silting up of the immediate area over the ages:</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]563314[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>Greco-Persian Wars, 500-479 BC (Miletos was under Persian control <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie3" alt=":(" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />) :</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]563315[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Please post your coins of Miletos, lions, and/or Apollo if you&#039;d like![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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