LUCANIA. Poseidonia. Circa 530-500 BC. Stater (Silver, 28 mm, 7.51 g, 12 h). MOΠ Poseidon, nude but for chlamys draped over both his arms, striding right, brandishing trident held in his right hand and extending his left; all within cable border. Rev. Poseidon, as on the obverse, but to left and incuse, except for the trident, which is in relief; to right, MOΠ (in relief); all within rayed border. BMC 1. Gorini 3. HGC 1, 1150. HN Italy 1107. SNG ANS 613. SNG Ashmolean 81. An exceptional piece of magnificent late Archaic style. Beautifully toned and with a wonderful Poseidon. Minor marks, otherwise, nearly extremely fine.



Poseidonia was founded in the late 7th century BC by Sybaris on the southern shore of the Golfo di Salerno, on an alluvial plain bounded by the Silarus (Sele) river in the North, the Cilento mountains in the East and South, and the Sea in the West. The region was famous for its abundance of flowers, but it also held significant strategic importance, guarding the slopes of the wild and untamed Cilento mountain range (derived from Latin Cis Alentum = 'on this side of the Alentum [river]'), where Lucanian tribes dwelled. In circa 410/0 BC, Poseidonia apparently fell to these tribal warriors and was renamed to Paistos, before being turned into the Latin colony Paestum by the Romans in 273 BC. The silting of the harbor and repeated floods contributed to the decline of the city in the Roman imperial period, and the plain was eventually abandoned in the early middle ages.

Today, Poseidonia is best known by its Latin name Paestum, and famous both for its exceptionally well-preserved Doric temples, which are part of the UNESCO World Heritage, as well as for its magnificent coins.