SYRACUSE in SICILY 317BC Agathocles Athena Horseman Ancient Greek Coin i41440

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SYRACUSE in SICILY 317BC Agathocles Athena Horseman Ancient Greek Coin i41440:
$270.00

Item: i41440

Authentic Ancient Coin of:

Greek city ofSyracuse inSicily
Agathocles: Tyrant of Syracuse 317-289, King of Sicily 304-289 B.C.
Bronze 16mm (3.65 grams) Struck circa 317-289 B.C.
Reference: Calciati II pg. 246, 117; SNG ANS 697-699
Helmeted head of Athena right.
Horseman right.

You are offerding on the exact item pictured,provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee ofAuthenticity.

InGreek religion andmythology, Athena or Athene, also referred to as Pallas Athena/Athene , is the goddess of wisdom, courage, inspiration, civilization, law and justice, just warfare, mathematics, strength, strategy, the arts, crafts, and skill.Minerva is theRoman goddessidentified with Athena.

Athena as the goddess of philosophy became an aspect of the cult in Classical Greece during the late 5th century B.C. She is the patroness of various crafts, especially ofweaving, as Athena Ergane, and was honored as such at festivals such asChalceia. The metalwork of weapons also fell under her patronage. She led battles (Athena Promachos or the warrior maiden Athena Parthenos) as the disciplined, strategic side of war, in contrast to her brotherAres, the patron of violence, bloodlust and slaughter—\"the raw force of war\". Athena\'s wisdom includes the cunning intelligence (metis) of such figures asOdysseus. Not only was this version of Athena the opposite of Ares in combat, it was also the polar opposite of the serene earth goddess version of the deity, Athena Polias.

Athena appears in Greek mythology as the patron and helper of many heroes, includingOdysseus,Jason, andHeracles. InClassical Greek myths, she never consorts with a lover, nor does she ever marry,earning the title Athena Parthenos. A remnant of archaic myth depicts her as the adoptive mother ofErechtheus/Erichthonius through the foiled rape byHephaestus. Other variants relate that Erichthonius, the serpent that accompanied Athena, was born toGaia: when the rape failed, the semen landed on Gaia and impregnated her. After Erechthonius was born, Gaia gave him to Athena.

Though Athena is a goddess of war strategy, she disliked fighting without purpose and preferred to use wisdom to settle predicaments.The goddess only encouraged fighting for a reasonable cause or to resolve conflict. As patron of Athens she fought in the Trojan war on the side of the Achaeans.

Judgment of Paris

All the gods and goddesses as well as various mortals were invited to the marriage ofPeleus andThetis (the eventual parents ofAchilles). OnlyEris, goddess of discord, was not invited. She was annoyed at this, so she arrived with a golden apple inscribed with the word καλλίστῃ (kallistēi, \"for the fairest\"), which she threw among the goddesses. Aphrodite, Hera, and Athena all claimed to be the fairest, and thus the rightful owner of the apple.

The goddesses chose to place the matter before Zeus, who, not wanting to favor one of the goddesses, put the choice into the hands of Paris, aTrojan prince. After bathing in the spring ofMount Ida (where Troy was situated), the goddesses appeared before Paris. The goddesses undressed and presented themselves to Paris naked, either at his request or for the sake of winning.

Still, Paris could not decide, as all three were ideally beautiful, so they resorted to bribes. Hera tried to bribe Paris with control over allAsia andEurope, while Athena offered wisdom, fame and glory in battle, but Aphrodite came forth and whispered to Paris that if he were to choose her as the fairest he would have the most beautiful mortal woman in the world as a wife, and he accordingly chose her. This woman wasHelen, who was, unfortunately for Paris, already married to KingMenelaus ofSparta. The other two goddesses were enraged by this and through Helen\'s abduction by Paris they brought about theTrojan War.

Paris is awarding the apple to Aphrodite Urteil des Paris by Anton Raphael Mengs , ca. 1757

Agathocles (361-289BC), (Greekname Ἀγαθοκλῆς (Agathokles): derived from αγαθός (agathos)good and κλέος (kleos) glory), wastyrant ofSyracuse (317-289 BC) and king ofSicily (304-289 BC).

Biography

Agathocles was born at ThermaeHimeraeae (modern nameTermini Imerese) in Sicily. The son of apotter who had moved to Syracuse in about 343BC, he learned his father\'s trade, but afterwards entered the army. In333 BC he married thewidow of his patron Damas, a distinguished andwealthy citizen. He was twicebanished for attempting to overthrow theoligarchical party in Syracuse.

In 317 BC he returned with an army ofmercenaries under a solemn oath to observe thedemocraticconstitution which was then set up. Havingbanished or murdered some 10,000 citizens, and thus made himself master ofSyracuse, he created a strong army and fleet and subdued the greater part ofSicily.

War with Carthage followed. In 311 BC Agathocles wasbesieged and defeated in Syracuse inthe battle of Himera. After defeat in 310 BC hetook the desperate resolve of breaking through theblockade and attacking the enemy inAfrica. In Africa he concluded the treaty withOphellas, ruler ofCyrenaica. After several victories he was atlast completely defeated (307BC) and fled secretly to Sicily.

After concluding peace with Carthage in306 BC, Agathocles styled himself king ofSicily in 304 BC, and established his rule over theGreek cities of the island more firmly thanever. A peace treaty with Carthage left him in control of Sicily east of theHalycus River. Even in his old age he displayedthe same restless energy, and is said to have been contemplating a fresh attackon Carthage at the time of his death.

His last years were plagued by ill-health and the turbulence of his grandsonArchagathus, at whose instigation he is said tohave been poisoned (by hiseromenos, Menon of Ægista, who poisoned thetooth-cleaning quill);[1]according to others, he died a natural death. He was a born leader ofmercenaries, and, although he did not shrink from cruelty to gain his ends, heafterwards showed himself a mild and popular \"tyrant.\" Agathocles restored theSyracusan democracy on his death bed and did not want his sons to succeed him asking.

The historian Justin says that Agathocles was born in poverty but very earlyin life parlayed his remarkable beauty into a career as a prostitute, first formen, and later, after puberty, for women, then made a living by robbery beforebecoming a soldier.

Agathocles marriedTheoxena, stepdaughter ofPtolemy I of Egypt. His daughterLanassa married KingPyrrhus of Epirus.

Legacy

Agathocles was cited as from the lowest, most abject condition of life and asan example of “those who by their crimes come to be princes” in Chapter VIII ofNiccolò Machiavelli’s treatise on politics, The Prince (1513). He was described asbehaving as a criminal at every stage of his career. However, he came to \"glory\"as much as he did brutality by repelling invading Carthaginians and winning theloyalty of the denizens of his land. However, many later disapproved of hisactions, including to an extent Machiavelli, who claimed \"It cannot be calledprowess to kill fellow-citizens, to betray friends, to be treacherous, pitiless,irreligious.\"[2].Machiavelli, though, merely means that Agathocle\'s actions do not exemplifyprowess, as he does with many other examples in Chapter XV. He actually admiredAgothocles for his brutality, but criticized him for being so cruel in publicand thus losing the people\'s trust.

Syracuse is a historiccity insouthern Italy, thecapital of theprovince of Syracuse. The city is famous for its rich Greek and association toArchimedes,playing an important role in ancient times as one of the top powers of theMediterranean world; it is over 2,700 years old. Syracuse is located in thesouth-east corner of the island ofSicily, rightby the Gulf of Syracuse next to theIonian Sea.

The city was founded byAncient Greek Corinthians and became a very powerfulcity-state.Syracuse was allied withSparta andCorinth,exerting influence over the entire Magna Grecia area of which it was the most important city. Oncedescribed by Ciceroas \"the greatest Greek city and the most beautiful of them all\", it later becamepart of theRoman Republic andByzantine Empire. After thisPalermoovertook it in importance, as the capital of theKingdom of Sicily. Eventually the kingdom would be united with theKingdom of Naples to form theTwo Sicilies until theItalian unification of 1860.

In the modern day, the city is listed byUNESCO as aWorld Heritage Site along with theNecropolis of Pantalica. In the central area, the city itself has apopulation of around 125,000 people. The inhabitants are known as Siracusans,and the local language spoken by its inhabitants is theSicilian language. Syracuse is mentioned in theBible in theActs of the Apostles book at 28:12 asPaul stayed there.[2]The patron saint of the city isSaint Lucy;she was born in Syracuse and her feast day,Saint Lucy\'s Day, is celebrated on 13 December.

Greek period

Syracuse and its surrounding area have been inhabited since ancient times, asshown by the findings in the villages of Stentinello, Ognina, Plemmirio,Matrensa, Cozzo Pantano and Thapsos, which already had a relationshipwithMycenaean Greece.

Syracuse was founded in 734 or 733 BC by Greek settlers fromCorinth and Tenea,led by the oecist (colonizer)Archias, who called it Sirako, referring to a nearby salt marsh. Thenucleus of the ancient city was the small island of Ortygia. The settlersfound the land fertile and the native tribes to be reasonably well-disposed totheir presence. The city grew and prospered, and for some time stood as the mostpowerful Greek city anywhere in theMediterranean. Colonies were founded atAkrai (664 BC),Kasmenai (643 BC),Akrillai(VII century BC), Helorus (VII century BC) andKamarina(598 BC). The descendants of the first colonist, called Gamoroi, held thepower until they were expelled by the Killichiroi, the lower class of thecity. The former, however, returned to power in 485 BC, thanks to the help ofGelo, ruler ofGela. Gelo himselfbecame the despot of the city, and moved many inhabitants of Gela, Kamarina andMegera to Syracuse, building the new quarters ofTyche andNeapolis outside the walls. His program of new constructions included a newtheater, designed byDamocopos, which gave the city a flourishing cultural life: this in turnattracted personalities asAeschylus,Ario ofMetimma, Eumelos ofCorinth andSappho, who hadbeen exiled here fromMytilene.The enlarged power of Syracuse made unavoidable the clash against theCarthaginians, who ruled western Sicily. In theBattle of Himera, Gelo, who had allied with Theron ofAgrigento,decisively defeated the African force led byHamilcar. Atemple,entitled to Athena(on the site of the today\'s Cathedral), was erected in the city to commemoratethe event

Gelon was succedeed by his brotherHiero, whofought against theEtruscans at Cumae in 474 BC. His rule was eulogized by poets likeSimonides of Ceos,Bacchylides and Pindar, who visited his court. A democratic regime was introduced byThrasybulos (467 BC). The city continued to expand inSicily,fighting against the rebelliousSiculi, and on theTyrrhenian Sea, making expeditions up toCorsica andElba. In the late5th century BC, Syracuse found itself at war withAthens, whichsought more resources to fight thePeloponnesian War. The Syracusans enlisted the aid of a general fromSparta, Athens\'foe in the war, to defeat the Athenians, destroy their ships, and leave them tostarve on the island (seeSicilian Expedition). In 401 BC, Syracuse contributed a force of 3,000hoplites and a general toCyrus the Younger\'sArmy of the Ten Thousand.

Then in the early 4th century BC, thetyrantDionysius the Elder was again at war againstCarthageand, although losing Gela and Camarina, kept that power from capturing the wholeof Sicily. After the end of the conflict Dionysius built a massive fortress onthe Ortygiaisland of the city and 22km-long walls around all of Syracuse. Another periodof expansion saw the destruction ofNaxos, Catania and Lentini, then Syracuse entered again in war against Carthage (397 BC). Aftervarious changes of fortune, the Carthaginians managed to besiege Syracuseitself, but were eventually pushed back by a pestilence. A treaty in 392 BCallowed Syracuse to enlarge further its possessions, founding the cities ofAdrano, Ancona,Adria, Tindariand Tauromenos, and conqueringReggio Calabria on the continent. Apart from his battle deeds, Dionysius wasfamous as a patron of art, andPlato himselfvisited Syracuse several times.

His successor wasDionysius the Younger, who was however expelled byDion in 356 BC. But the latter\'s despotic rule led in turn to his expulsion,and Dionysius reclaimed his throne in 347 BC. A democratic government wasinstalled by Timoleon in 345 BC. The long series of internal struggles had weakenedSyracuse\'s power on the island, and Timoleon tried to remedy this, defeating theCarthaginians in 339 BC near theKrimisos river. But the struggle among the city\'s parties restarted afterhis death and ended with the rise of another tyrant,Agathocles,who seized power with a coup in 317 BC. He resumed the war against Carthage,with alternate fortunes. He however scored a moral success, bringing the war tothe Carthaginians\' native African soil, inflicting heavy losses to the enemy.The war ended with another treaty of peace which did not prevent theCarthaginians interfering in the politics of Syracuse after the death ofAgathocles (289 BC). The citizens calledPyrrhus of Epirus for help. After a brief period under the rule of Epirus,Hiero II seized power in 275 BC.

Hiero inaugurated a period of 50 years of peace and prosperity, in whichSyracause became one of the most renowned capitals of Antiquity. He issued theso-called Lex Hieronica, which was later adopted by the Romans for theiradministration of Sicily; he also had the theater enlarged and a new immensealtar, the \"Hiero\'sAra\", built. Under his rule lived the most famous Syracusan, thenatural philosopherArchimedes.Among his many inventions were various military engines including theclaw of Archimedes, later used to resist theRomansiege of 214BC–212BC. Literary figures includedTheocritusand others.

Hiero\'s successor, the youngHieronymus (ruled from 215 BC), broke the alliance with the Romans aftertheir defeat at theBattle of Cannae and acceptedCarthage\'ssupport. The Romans, led by consulMarcus Claudius Marcellus,besieged the city in 214 BC. The city held out for three years, but fell in212 BC. It is believed to have fallen due to a peace party opening a small doorin the wall to negotiate a peace, but the Romans charged through the door andtook the city, killing Archimedes in the process.

FromRoman domination to the Middle Ages

Though declining slowly by the years, Syracuse maintained the status ofcapital of the Roman government of Sicily and seat of thepraetor. Itremained an important port for the trades between the Eastern and the Westernparts of the Empire.Christianity spread in the city through the efforts ofPaul of Tarsus and Saint Marziano, the first bishop of the city, who made itone of the main centres ofproselytism in the West. In the age of the persecutions massivecatacombs were carved, whose size is second only to those of Rome.

After a period ofVandal rule, Syracuse and the island was recovered byBelisariusfor theByzantine Empire (31 December 535). From 663 to 668 Syracuse was the seat ofEmperor Constans II, as well as metropolis of the whole Sicilian Church.

Another siege in 878, resulted in the city coming under two centuries ofMuslim rule. Thecapital was moved from Syracuse toPalermo. TheCathedral was converted into amosque and thequarter on the Ortygia island was gradually rebuilt along Islamic styles. Thecity, nevertheless, maintained important trade relationships, and housed arelatively flourishing cultural and artistic life: several Arab poets, includingIbn Hamdis,the most important Sicilian poet of the 12th century, flourished in the city.

In 1038, the Byzantine generalGeorge Maniaces reconquered the city, sending the relics of St. Lucy toConstantinople. The eponymous castle on the cape of Ortygia bears his name,although it was built under theHohenstaufen rule. In 1085 theNormansentered Syracuse, one of the lastArab strongholds, after a summer-long siege byRoger I of Sicily and his sonJordan of Hauteville, who was given the city as count. New quarters werebuilt, and the cathedral was restored, as well as other churches.

In 1194Henry VI of Swabia occupied Syracuse. After a short period ofGenoese rule (1205–1220), which favoured a rise of trades, Syracuse wasconquered back by emperorFrederick II. He began the construction of theCastello Maniace, the Bishops\' Palace and the Bellomo Palace. Frederick\'sdeath brought a period of unrest and feudal anarchy. In the struggle between theAnjou andAragonese monarchies, Syracuse sided with the Aragonese and defeated theAnjou in 1298, receiving from the Spanish sovereigns great privileges in reward.The pre-eminence of baronal families is also shown by the construction of thepalaces of Abela,Chiaramonte, Nava,Montalto.

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