Sicily, Gela AR Tetradrachm. Circa 465-450 BC. Charioteer driving slow quadriga right, Ionic column behind, wreath before, ear of corn in exergue / Forepart of man-headed bull (river-god Gelas) with long beard to right, Nike above, CELAΣ behind. Jenkins, Gela 218 (O57/R116). 17.58g, 28mm, 6h. Near Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare. The Gelan tetradrachms of this series featuring a Nike above Gelas are exceptionally difficult to find, particularly in such excellent condition. From the David Freedman Collection. When Hieron I died, the tyranny of Syracuse was usurped by his brother Thrasyboulos, who it appears had corrupted the son of Hieron into an odious youth, that he might more easily set him aside and take the throne for himself. According to Diodorus (XI, 67) his rapacity and cruelty soon provoked a revolt at Syracuse, which Thrasyboulos sought to crush using foreign mercenaries and troops from Aetna and Katane. The Syracusans entrenched themselves in the quarter of the city called Tyche, and sent requests for assistance to Gela, Akragas, Selinos, Himera and the other inland cities of Sicily. Gela and the other cities responded, and dealt Thrasyboulos a decisive defeat on land and sea, forcing his abdication and retirement into exile. The Group III tetradrachms were struck an appreciable interval after the last issue of Group II, and appear to have been coined at the time of the expedition to Syracuse as the means of meeting the implicit expense of the campaign. The most distinctive feature of the obverse die is the Ionic column in the background, which it is reasonable to assume is a terma, or turning point. This deduction is reinforced by the presence on the first two dies of a wreath and Nike respectively, emphasising the agonistic nature of the scene. The terma is included as a stylistic and cultural symbol that serves the purpose of being a pleasant architectural adjunct that places the quadriga in a more specific context.
Sicily, Gela AR Tetradrachm. Circa 465-450 BC. Charioteer driving slow quadriga right, Ionic column behind, wreath before, ear of corn in exergue / Forepart of man-headed bull (river-god Gelas) with long beard to right, Nike above, CELAΣ behind. Jenkins, Gela 218 (O57/R116). 17.58g, 28mm, 6h. Near Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare. The Gelan tetradrachms of this series featuring a Nike above Gelas are exceptionally difficult to find, particularly in such excellent condition. From the David Freedman Collection. When Hieron I died, the tyranny of Syracuse was usurped by his brother Thrasyboulos, who it appears had corrupted the son of Hieron into an odious youth, that he might more easily set him aside and take the throne for himself. According to Diodorus (XI, 67) his rapacity and cruelty soon provoked a revolt at Syracuse, which Thrasyboulos sought to crush using foreign mercenaries and troops from Aetna and Katane. The Syracusans entrenched themselves in the quarter of the city called Tyche, and sent requests for assistance to Gela, Akragas, Selinos, Himera and the other inland cities of Sicily. Gela and the other cities responded, and dealt Thrasyboulos a decisive defeat on land and sea, forcing his abdication and retirement into exile. The Group III tetradrachms were struck an appreciable interval after the last issue of Group II, and appear to have been coined at the time of the expedition to Syracuse as the means of meeting the implicit expense of the campaign. The most distinctive feature of the obverse die is the Ionic column in the background, which it is reasonable to assume is a terma, or turning point. This deduction is reinforced by the presence on the first two dies of a wreath and Nike respectively, emphasising the agonistic nature of the scene. The terma is included as a stylistic and cultural symbol that serves the purpose of being a pleasant architectural adjunct that places the quadriga in a more specific context.
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