ARKADIA, Arkadian League. Circa 460-450 BC. Hemidrachm (Silver, 14 mm, 2.89 g, 6 h), by the 'Paris master'. Tegea mint. Zeus Lykaios seated right, seen partially from behind, holding eagle alighting to right in his right hand and long scepter in his left. Rev. APKA-DI-KON Head of Kallisto facing three-quarters to right, wearing tainia and necklace and with her hair tied in a bun at the back; all within incuse square. A. Baldwin: Facing heads of Greek coins, in: ANJ 43 (1909), 29 and pl. IX, 12 (this coin). BCD Peloponnesos 1714 (this coin). Williams, Arcadians, 186a (this coin, O126/R118). Very rare and with an excellent pedigree. Beautifully toned and of great artistic beauty. Slightly rough, otherwise, very fine.




The city of Tegea dominated the eastern Arkadian plateau and became a member of the Peloponnesian League in the 550s BC. The Tegeans supported Sparta during the second Persian invasion of Greece in 480-479 with a contingent of 1,500 heavy infantrymen, who fought jointly with the 10,000 Spartiates in the Battle of Plataia (Hdt. 9.28). The polis grew considerably through the synoikism of nine villages in circa 478-473 BC, which perhaps incited the Tegeans to rebel against the Spartan hegemony in circa 470 BC. However, the strive for independence was crushed in an otherwise unknown war (Hdt. 9.35.2) and Tegea remained staunchly pro-Spartan until the Battle of Leuktra of 371 BC, perhaps not least due to its rivalry with the Mantineians, who traditionally opposed Spartan supremacy.

The earliest silver coinage of Tegea was struck in the 460s-450s BC. It is uniformly very rare and shines with early attempts of adding perspective to the motives: Zeus Lykaios, on the obverse, is shown partially from behind, whereas the head of Kallisto on the reverse is among the earliest facing portraits on Greek coins.