English Coins and Tokens, with a Chapter on Greek and Roman Coins

by Llewellynn Frederick William Jewitt; Barclay V. Head

Of the various standards of weight which prevailed in different parts of the Greek world, the Attic standard was the most widely diffused. The weights of the various denominations, according to this standard, are as follows:—

The	Talent = 405,000 grs. troy } not coined		{= 6,000 drachms.
"	Mina (1/60 of the Talent } = 6,750 grs. troy) }		{ {= 100 drachms.
"	Tetradrachm	= 270	grs. troy = 4 drachms.
"	Didrachm	= 135	" " = 2 "
"	Drachm	= 67·5	" " = 1 "
"	Tetrobol	= 45	" " = 4 obols.
"	Triobol	= 33·75	" " = ½ drachm or 3 obols.
"	Diobol	= 22·5	" " = 2 obols.
"	Trihemiobol	= 16·8	" " = 1½ obols.
"	Obol	= 11·25	" " = 1 obol.
"	Hemiobol	= 5·62	" " = ½ "
"	Tetartemorion	= 2·81	" " = ¼ "

The other standards are the Æginetic (drachm 97 grs.); the Phœnician (drachm 56 grs.); the Rhodian (drachm 60 grs.); the Persian (drachm 88 grs.). The other denominations of the above standards may be easily got at by multiplying or dividing the drachms as in the Attic standard.

Larger denominations than the tetradrachm are rare, but octadrachms, decadrachms, etc., etc., occur at some towns. The unit in copper was called the chalkous; but its weight does not appear to have been definitely fixed like that of the silver drachm.

The Attic gold money was regulated according to the same standard of weight as the silver. The gold unit of account was, however, not the drachm, but the stater, as it was called, equivalent in weight to the didrachm, and in value to 20 drachms of silver.

As a rule, the denomination of a Greek coin can only be determined by weighing it. Marks of value occur, however, on the copper of Italy, Sicily, etc.; but these coins follow a system foreign to Greece proper (see below).

§ OF THE ARRANGEMENT OF A CABINET OF GREEK COINS.

Greek coins are classified in all great collections in geographical order, as follows:—The towns under each province should be arranged alphabetically, for convenience of reference. We have only space here to mention a few of the principal cities:—

EUROPE.
Provinces.		Cities, Islands, Tribes, Kings, etc.
Spain.
	Lusitania	Emerita.
	Bætica	Cartiea, Gades.
	Tarraconensis	Emporiæ, Osca, Rhoda, etc.
Gaul.
	Aquitania	Arverni.
	Narbonensis	Massilia, Nemausus.
	Lugdunensis	Lugdunum.
	Belgica
Britain.		Atrebates, etc., Camulodunum.
Italia.
	Etruria	Populonia.
	Umbria	Tuder.
	Picenum	Hatria.
	Vestini
	Latium	Roma.
	Samnium	Beneventum.
	Frentani	Larinum.
	Campania	Capua, Cumæ, Neapolis, Nola.
	Apulia	Arpi, Cælia, Teate, Venusia.
	Calabria	Brundusium, Tarentum.
	Lucania	Metapotum, Posidonia, Thurium, Velia.
	Bruttii	Croton, Locri, Rhegium, Terina.
Sicily.		Agrigentum, Camarina, Gela, Himera, Leontini, Messana, Naxos, Segesta, Selinus, and Syracuse.
	Kings, etc., of	Agathocles, Hicetas, Hiero II., Philistis, Gelo, Hieronymus.
	Siculo-Punic	Solus, Motya, Panormus.
	Islands of Sicily	Lipara, Sardinia.
Tauric Chersonese		Panticapæum.
Sarmatia		Olbia, Tyra.
Dacia.
Mœsia Superior		Viminacium.
Mœsia Inferior		Istrus, Marcianopolis, Nicopolis, Tomi.
Thrace		Abdera, Ænus, Byzantium, Maronea,Perinthus, Philippopolis.
Thracian Chersonese		Cardia, Cœla, Lysimachia.
	Kings of Thrace	Seuthes, etc., Rhœmetalces, etc.
	Islands of Thrace	Imbros, Lemnos, Samothrace, Thasos.
Pæonia, Kings		Lycceius, Patraus, Audoleon.
Macedon, Cities		Acanthus, Amphipolis, Chalcidice, Lete, Neapolis, Pella, Philippi, Pydna, Thessalonica.
	Tribes	Bisaltæ, Orrescii.
	Kings of	Alexander I., Perdiccas II., Archelaus I., Amyntas III., Philip II., Alexander the Great, Philip III., Cassander, Lysimachus, Demetrius I., Antigonus I. and II., Philip V., Perseus.
Thessaly		Ænianes, Crannon, Larissa, Pharsalus, Pheræ.
Illyricum		Apollonia, Dyrrachium.
Epirus		Cassope, Damastium, Nicopolis.
	Island of	Corcyra.
	Kings of	Alexander I., Pyrrhus.
Acarnania		Œiadæ, Thyrreum.
	Island of	Leucas.
Ætolia		Federal coins.
Locris		Opus, Amphissa.
Phocis		Delphi.
Bœotia		Coronea, Haliartus, Orchomenus, Tanagra, Thebes, Thespiæ.
Attica		Athens, Eleusis.
	Islands of	Eubœa (with its towns, Chalcis, Carystus, Eretria, Histiæa), Salamis.
Megara.
Ægina.
Achæa		Ægium, etc., Corinth, Patræ, Phlius, Sicyon.
Elis		Elis.
	Islands of Elis	Cephallenia, Zacynthus.
Messenia		Messene.
Laconia		Lacedæmon.
Argolis		Argos, Epidaurus, Trœzen.
Arcadia		Heræa, Megalopolis, Pheneus, Stymphalus.
Crete		Cnossus, Gortyna, Hierapytna, Phæstus.
Ægean Islands		Ceos, Naxos, Siphnos, Syros, Tenos, etc.
ASIA.
Provinces.		Cities, Islands, Tribes, Kings, etc.
Bosporus		Phanagoria.
Colchis		Dioscurias.
Pontus		Amisus, Amasia, Trapezus.
	Kings of Pontus and Bosporus	Mithradates IV., Pharnaces I., MithradatesVI. the Great, etc.
Paphlagonia		Amastris, Sinope.
Bithynia		Chalcedon, Cius, Heraclea (Timotheus, Dionysius, Amastris).
	Kings of	Nicomedes I., II., and III., Prusias I., II.
Mysia		Cyzicus, Lampsacus, Pergamus.
	Kings of Pergamus	Philetaerus, the Attalids.
Troas		Abydos, Alexandria, Troas, Ilium, Scepsis.
	Island of Troas	Tenedos.
Æolis		Cyme, Myrina, Temnos.
	Islands of Æolis	Lesbos (Methymna, Mytilene).
Ionia		Clazomenæ, Colophon, Ephesus, Erythræ, Magnesia, Miletus, Smyrna.
	Islands of Ionia	Chios, Samos.
Caria		Cnidus, Halicarnassus, Stratonicæa.
	Kings of Caria	Hecatomnus, Mausolus, Hidrieus, Pixodarus.
	Islands of Caria	Calymna, Cos, Rhodes Ialysus, Camirus, Lindus.
Lycia		Cragus, Myra, Patara, Phaselis, etc.
Pamphylia		Aspendus, Perga, Side.
Pisidia		Antiochia, Sagalassus, Selge.
Isauria and Lycaonia		Iconium, etc.
Cilicia		Celenderis, Mallus, Soli, Tarsus, etc.
Cyprus		Paphos, Salamis.
	Kings of Cyprus	Baalmelek, Azbaal, Evagoras, Nicocles, etc.
Lydia		Sardes, Tralles, etc.
Phrygia		Apamea, Cibyra, etc.
Galatia		Ancyra, Pessinus, etc.
	Kings of Galatia	Amyntas, etc.
Cappadocia		Cæsarea, etc.
	Kings of Cappadocia	Ariarathes, Ariobarzanes, etc.
Armenia, Kings of		Tigranes, Artavazdes, etc.
Syria, Kings of		Seleucus I. (Nicator), Antiochus I. (Soter), Antiochus III. (the Great), etc., etc.
Commagene		Samosata, Zeugma.
Cyrrhestica		Berœa, Hierapolis.
Chalcidene		Chalcis.
Seleucis and Pieria		Antioch.
Cœle-Syria		Damascus, Heliopolis, Laodicea ad Libanum.
Trachonitis with Ituræa		Cæsarea-Paneas.
Decapolis		Canatha, Gadara, Philadelphia, etc.
Phœnice		Byblus, Marathus, Sidon, Tyre.
	Island of	Aradus.
Galilæa		Ace (Ptolemais), Sepphoris (Diocæsarea), Tiberias.
Samaria		Cæsarea, Joppa, Sebaste.
Judæa		Ælia Capitolina (Jerusalem), Ascalon, etc.
	Judæa, Kings of	Simon Maccabæus, Alexander Jannæus, Herod the Great, Agrippa, etc., etc.
Arabia		Bostra, Philippopolis.
Mesopotamia		Carrhæ, Edessa (Kings—Mannus, Abgarus, etc.)
Babylonia, King of		Timarchus.
Assyria		Niniva (Claudiopolis).
Parthia, Kings of		Arsaces I. and his Successors.
Persia, Kings of		Darius, the son of Hystaspes, Xerxes, Artaxerxes, etc.
Bactriana and India Kings of		Sophytes, Diodotus, Euthydemus. Demetrius, Eucratides, Heliocles, Euthydemus II., Pantaleon, Agathocles, Antimachus, etc., etc.
Characene, Kings of		Tiræus, Artabazes, Attambilus, etc.
AFRICA.
Provinces.		Cities, Islands, Tribes, Kings, etc.
Egypt, The Ptolemaic Kings of.		Ptolemy I. (Soter),—Ptolemy XIII. and, Cleopatra.
	Alexandria, Imperial	M. Antony,—Galerius.
The Nomes.
Cyrenaica		Cyrene, Barca.
Syrtica		Leptis Magna, Oea.
Byzacene		Hadrumetum, etc.
Zeugitana		Carthage, Utica, etc.
Numidia, Kings of		Jugurtha, etc.
Mauretania		Bocchus I., Juba II., etc.

The above list, although an outline of the barest description, may serve to give some idea of the ground which is covered by a collection of Greek and cognate coins.