BoeotiaDrachm

AR Boeotia, Thebes? Drachm 450 B.C.(5.93g) O: Boeotian Shield; SNG Lockett 1776(obv.die); SNG Winterthur 1920 (obv.die); Head, Boeotia page 58(e): BMC 34,17, plate V,7. R: Amphora in deep incuse square G: "beautifully toned. Quite scarce". EF This enigmatic series of coins which were dated far too early by Head (who had no hoard information) were probably struck when Demetrius Poliorcetes "liberated" Thebes, or during the decade that followed. The Talanta (1948) hoard (CH III, 31), with a burial date of c. 280 BC, would point to a minting date for these coins of circa 300 BC. They are almost never encountered well centered on both sides and sharply struck at the same time. This also speaks for their late date but was not used as an argument when Head dated them to 387-374 BC. For Head's listing of these coins see Head, Boeotia, pp. 57-60. S: Edward J. Waddell, Ltd. 11/18/93