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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;zumbly, post: 2126282, member: 57495&quot;]Many connoisseurs of cured meat call Jamón Ibérico de Bellota the ultimate ham.&nbsp; This is the flavoursome fat-marbled haunch of free-ranging Iberian pigs that can gorge on as much 10 kilos of acorns (bellota) a day.&nbsp; A culinary pride of Spain today, I doubt by a long shot that the delicious results of porkers scarfing down on acorns was a regional secret in ancient times.</p><p><br /></p><p>I recently picked up this cool little litra from Abakainon in Sicily that shows a boar standing over an acorn.&nbsp; It is evidence I suspect, that the locals knew a thing or two about how yummy these little acorn-eaters could be.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]403910[/ATTACH]</p><p><b>SICILY, Abakainon</b></p><p>Circa 450 - 400 BC</p><p>AR Litra</p><p>0.58g, 12.5mm</p><p>HGC 18</p><p>O: Bearded head with shaggy hair right.</p><p>R: ABA, boar standing left; acorn before.</p><p>Notes: Toned. Rare variety.</p><p><br /></p><p>Abakainon (Abacaenum in Latin) was a town of the Sicels, the Italic tribe who dwelt in the eastern regions of Sicily, and who gave the island its name.&nbsp; The town was about 4 miles inland from the northeastern coast of Sicily, where the expansive oak forests of the Nebrodi Mountains nearby would have provided food for roaming herds of swine.</p><p><br /></p><p>While usually described simply as &quot;boar&quot; in numismatic descriptions, what we see on Abakainon&#039;s coins are likely to be the <i>Nero dei Nebrodi</i>, the Sicilian Black Pigs of the Nebrodi Mountains that closely resemble the wild boar, right down to having a prominent ridge of stiff back bristles.&nbsp; These days, the salami and proscuitto derived from this variety are virtually unknown outside of Sicily, so alas, while I&#039;ve eaten a lot of ham in my day, these are types I haven&#039;t had the privilege of sampling. Yet <img src="styles/default/xenforo/clear.png" class="mceSmilieSprite mceSmilie8" alt=":D" unselectable="on" unselectable="on" />.</p><p><br /></p><p>Post pictures of your coins of Abakainon, or that have pigs or boars on them, or just pictures that featured your favorite cured meat...</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]403909[/ATTACH][/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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