400-344 B.C. Thessaly Phalanna Bronze Nymph S.2180

$125.00

Select a Grade: Very Fine Plus

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From the plains of Thessaly came a tribe of Greek warriors so renowned for their horses and cavalry that the powerful city-state Athens wanted them as allies, and Philip II of Macedonia made them the mainstay of his army. Sheltered by Mount Olympus (home of the gods), Thessaly was also home of the great heroes Achilles, who fought in the Trojan War, and Jason, who claimed the Golden Fleece. Its fertile plains provided grains for its horses and room for its cavalry to train. Now centuries later, this ancient bronze coin recalls those warrior horsemen whowere the elite cavalry of the Greek world.

Struck over 2,300 years ago in the town of Phalanna, in northern Thessaly, each bronze coin features the head of a young man with short hairon the obverse. (Some believe he is Ares, the god of War.) The reverse shows the nymph Phalanna with her hair in a bun. Hear the cry of warriors, the clash of spears and thunder of horses as you hold this amazing Greek coin from the birthplace of heroes.