DOS (φερνή, προΐξ), dowry. (1) Greek. In the Homeric times it was customary for the husband to purchase his wife from her relations, by gifts called ἕδνα or ἔεδνα. But at Athens, during the historical period, the contrary was the case; for every woman had to bring her husband some dowry, and so universal was the practice, that one of the chief distinctions between a wife and a παλλακή, or concubine, consisted in the former having a portion, whereas the latter had not; hence, persons who married wives without portions appear to have given them or their guardians an acknowledgment in writing by which the receipt of a portion was admitted. Moreover, poor heiresses were either married or portioned by their next of kin, according to a law, which fixed the amount of portion to be given at five minae by a Pentacosiomedimnus, three by a Horseman, and one and a half by a Zeugites. The husband had to give to the relatives or guardians of the wife security (ἀποτίμημα) for the dowry, which was not considered the property of the husband himself, but rather of his wife and children. The portion was returned to the wife in case of a divorce.—(2) Roman. The dos among the Romans was every thing which on the occasion of a woman’s marriage was transferred by her, or by another person, to the husband. All the property of the wife which was not made dos continued to be her own, and was comprised under the name of parapherna. The dos upon its delivery became the husband’s property, and continued to be his so long as the marriage relation existed. In the case of divorce, the woman, or her relations, could bring an action for the restitution of the dos; and, accordingly, a woman whose dos was large (dotata uxor) had some influence over her husband, inasmuch as she had the power of divorcing herself, and thus of depriving him of the enjoyment of her property.
Attic Drachma. (British Museum.)
DRACHMA (δραχμή), the principal silver coin among the Greeks. The two chief standards in the currencies of the Greek states were the Attic and Aeginetan. The average value of the Attic drachma was 9¾d. of our money. It contained six obols (ὀβολοί); and the Athenians had separate silver coins, from four drachmae to a quarter of an obol. There were also silver pieces of two drachmae and four drachmae. (See tables.) The tetradrachm in later times was called stater. The latter word also signifies a gold coin, equal in value to twenty drachmae [[Stater]]. The obolos, in later times, was of bronze: but in the best times of Athens we only read of silver obols. The χαλκοῦς was a copper coin, and the eighth part of an obol. The Attic standard prevailed most in the maritime and commercial states. It was the standard of Philip’s gold, and was introduced by Alexander for silver also.—The Aeginetan standard appears to have been the prevalent one in early times: we are told that money was first coined at Aegina by order of Pheidon at Argos. In later times the Aeginetan standard was used in almost all the states of the Peloponnesus, except Corinth. The average value of the Aeginetan drachma was 1s. 1¾d. in our money; and the values of the different coins of this standard are as follows:—
| Shill. | Pence. | Farth. | |
| ½ Obol | - | 1 | 0·583 |
| Obol | - | 2 | 1·166 |
| Diobolus | - | 4 | 2·33 |
| Triobolus | - | 6 | 2·5 |
| Drachma | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| Didrachm | 2 | 3 | 2 |
Aeginetan Drachma. (British Museum.)
As the Romans reckoned in sesterces, so the Greeks generally reckoned by drachmae; and when a sum is mentioned in the Attic writers, without any specification of the unit, drachmae are usually meant.
DRĂCO. [[Signa Militaria].]
DŬCĒNĀRĬI.—(1) The name given to the Roman procuratores, who received a salary of 200 sestertia. The procuratores first received a salary in the time of Augustus.—(2) A class or decuria of judices, first established by Augustus. They were so called because their property, as valued in the census, amounted only to 200 sestertia. They appear to have tried cases of small importance.