Bruttium, Caulonia 450-445 BC, silver Nomos

Bruttium, Caulonia 450-445 BC, silver Nomos, naked Apollo standing right, holding branch in raised right hand, on extended left arm small running figure. In field right, stag with head turned back, rev. KAVΛ retrograde stag standing right; in field right, two branches, 7.74g, 2h (Noe Caulonia 96. Historia Numorum Italy 2046). Iridescent tone and About Extremely fine.

This silvernomoswas struck atCaulonia, an ancient Greekcity on theeast coast ofsouthern Italy, inthe region laterknown as Bruttium. Caulonia was foundedby Achaean Greeksettlers during theseventh century BCand became partof the Greekworld ofMagna Graecia. Its location onthe coast madeit an importantcentre for tradeand communication insouthern Italy. The coin dates to around450-445 BC, during the Classical period, when Caulonia was producing distinctive silver coinage. The city is particularly famous for its unusual coin designs featuringApollo. On this type, Apollo stands naked holding a branch, with a small winged figure on his outstretched arm, while astagappears beside him. The reverse repeats the stag and branches in a different arrangement. These designs probably had religious significance, particularly relating to Apollo and local cult practices. Caulonia's prosperity eventuallycame to anend. In388 BC, the city wasdestroyed byDionysius I ofSyracuse, and its territorywas given toneighbouring Locri. Thedestruction brought Caulonia's independent coinageto an end, making surviving coinssuch as thisnomos important evidencefor the historyand culture ofthe city.

The reverse and obverse legend KAVΛ translates to "Caulonia".