SICILY. Syracuse. Second Democracy, 466-405 BC. Tetradrachm (Silver, 26 mm, 17.48 g, 5 h), circa 406-405. Charioteer, holding reins and kentron, driving a quadriga rushing to left, about to turn; above, Nike flying right to crown the driver; below the hooves of the horse in the foreground, chariot wheel; in exergue, barley ear. Rev. ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ Head of Arethusa to left, wearing ampyx and sphendone decorated with stars, triple pendant earring and simple necklace; around, three dolphins swimming in different directions, with a fourth emerging from behind the neck. Gulbenkian 294 (same dies). HGC 2, 1342. SNG Fitzwilliam 1250 (same dies). SNG Lloyd 1395 (same dies). Tudeer (FB) 84 (V31/R56). With a reverse of supreme Classical style. Usual die wear on the obverse, otherwise, very fine/about extremely fine. Ex Numismatica Ars Classica 114, 2019, 82, originally acquired from Classical Numismatic Group (inventory: 823322). Arethusa is portrayed in so many different ways on the coins of Syracuse! Every engraver had his (one assumes that ancient Greek engravers were men, rather than women, given the way ancient society worked) own vision of what Arethusa looked like: perhaps modelled on an actual woman he knew or had seen, or a composite picture taken from a number of the stylish beauties of the day (the fact that some of the Arethusas who appear on the coinage of Syracuse, especially in the earlier 5th century, look anything but stylish can be blamed on the engraver’s lack of skill). Here we have a clearly young woman - certainly not out of her teens, wearing attractive jewels, an elaborate hair net, and with her hair beautifully coiffed: she could be an English aristocrat being presented at Court during the Regency! https://cdn.nomosag.com/auctions/95/video00100.mp4?sv=2023-01-03&ss=b&srt=co&st=2025-03-10T16%3A25%3A27Z&se=2099-03-11T16%3A25%3A00Z&sp=rl&sig=i7RzFAqwYGMJUp3u71BbRyL3HhIAtR%2F8cUnRnTVQfyU%3D&rsct=video%2Fmp4