IONIA. Erythrae. Ca. 550-500 BC. EL sixth-stater or hecte (9mm, 2.55 gm). NGC

Description

IONIA. Erythrae. Ca. 550-500 BC. EL sixth-stater or hecte (9mm, 2.55 gm). NGC Choice VF 3/5 – 4/5. Head of Heracles left, wearing lion skin headdress / Quadripartite incuse square punch with two filled quadrants. SNG von Aulock 1942. SNG Kayhan 737-738.

Note – the recent publication by W. Fischer-Bossert, “Die Electronhekten mit dem Herakleskopf: Herakleia Pontike, nicht Erythrai”, NZ 126 (2020) reattributes this issue to Bithynia-Heraclea Pontica.

The ancient city of Heraclea Pontica, nestled along the southern coast of the Black Sea, in present-day Turkey, has an intriguing history intertwined with the rise and fall of Hellenistic civilization. Founded by Megarian colonists in the 6th century BC, the city quickly became a significant maritime and trading hub, drawing its importance from its strategic location between the East and West.