SOLUS in SICILY 4thCenBC Athena Archer RARE R1 Genuine Ancient Greek Coin i55286

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SOLUS in SICILY 4thCenBC Athena Archer RARE R1 Genuine Ancient Greek Coin i55286:
$640.00

Item: i55286

Authentic Ancient Coin of:

Greek city of Solus in Sicily
Bronze 13mm (2.11 grams)Struck late fourth century B.C.
Reference: HGC 2, 1254Rare R1;CNS I. p. 309, nos. 5-5/3; Sear 1181; B.M.C.2.,p.242,5
Head of Athena three-quarter face to right, wearingtriple-crested Attic helmet.
Punic legend \'kfra\'. Naked archer kneeling right, about to discharge arrow frombow.

A Phoenician town not far fromPanormos, and a dependency of Carthage until the First Punic War.

You are offerding on the exact item pictured,provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee ofAuthenticity.

Soluntum or Solus (Greek:Σολόεις,Thuc.; Σολοῦς,Diod.:Eth. Σολουντῖνος, Diod., but coins have Σολοντῖνος;Italian Solunto) was an ancient city ofSicily, one of the three chiefPhoenician settlements in theisland, situated on the north coast, about 16kilometres (10mi) east of Panormus (modernPalermo), and immediately to the east of thebold promontory called Capo Zafferano. It lay 183 metres (600ft) abovesea level, on the southeast side of MonteCatalfano 373 metres (1,225ft), in a naturally strong situation, and commandinga fine view. Some scholars contend that Soluntum and Solus were two differentcities at close quarters, Soluntum, higher upon the hillside, being a laterhabitation displacing the earlier settlement of Solus, at a lower elevation. Itscurrent site is at the località of Sòlanto in the comune ofSanta Flavia.

History

The date of its first occupation is, like that of Panormus (Palermo),unknown. From its proximity to Panormus, Soluntum was one of the few coloniesthat the Phoenicians retained when they gave way before the advance of the Greekcolonies in Sicily, and withdrew to the northwest corner of the island. It thenpassed together with Panormus andMotya into the hands of theCarthaginians, or at least became a dependencyof that people. It continued steadfast to the Carthaginian alliance even in397BCE, when the formidable armament ofDionysius shook the fidelity of most of theirallies; its territory was in consequence ravaged by Dionysius, but withouteffect. At a later period of the war (396BCE) it was betrayed into the hands ofthat despot, but probably soon fell again into the power of the Carthaginians.It was certainly one of the cities that usually formed part of their dominionsin the island; and in 307BCE it was given up by them to the soldiers andmercenaries ofAgathocles, who had made peace with theCarthaginians when abandoned by their leader in Africa. During theFirst Punic War we find it still subject toCarthage, and it was not till after the fall of Panormus that Soluntum alsoopened its gates to theRomans. It continued to subsist under the Romandominion as amunicipal town, but apparently one of no greatimportance, as its name is only slightly and occasionally mentioned byCicero. But it is still noticed both byPliny andPtolemy, where the name is corruptly writtenὈλουλίς), as well as at a later period bythe Itineraries, which place it 12miles from Panormus and 12 from Thermae(modernTermini Imerese). Soluntum minted coins inantiquity. It is probable that its complete destruction dates from the time oftheSaracens.

Excavations andremains

Excavations have brought to light considerableremains of the ancient town, belonging entirely to the Roman period, and a gooddeal still remains unexplored. The traces of two ancient roads, paved withlarge blocks of stone, which led up to the city, may still be followed, and thewhole summit of Monte Catalfano is covered with fragments of ancient walls andfoundations of buildings. Among these may be traced the remains of two temples,of which some capitals and portions of friezes, have been discovered. An archaicorientalArtemis sitting between alion and apanther, found here, is in themuseum at Palermo, with other antiquities fromthis site. Aninscription, erected by the citizens in honorofFulvia Plautilla, the wife ofCaracalla, was found there in 1857. With theexception of the winding road by which the town was approached on the south, thestreets, despite the unevenness of the ground, which in places is so steep thatsteps have to be introduced, are laid out regularly, running from east to westand from north to south, and intersecting at right angles. They are as a rulepaved with slabs of stone. The houses were constructed of rough walling, whichwas afterwards plastered over; the natural rock is often usedfor the lower part of the walls. One of the largest of them, with aperistyle, was in 1911, though wrongly, calledthegymnasium. Near the top of the town are somecisterns cut in the rock, and at the summit isa larger house than usual, withmosaicpavements andpaintings on its walls. Several sepulchres alsohave been found.

Sicily (Italian:Sicilia[siˈtʃiːlja]) is thelargest island in theMediterranean Sea; along with surrounding minorislands, it constitutes anautonomous region ofItaly, and it is officially referred to as Regione Siciliana (Sicilian Region).

Sicilyis located in the central Mediterranean. It extends from the tip of theApennine peninsula, from which it is separatedonly by the narrowStrait of Messina, towards the North Africancoast. Its most prominent landmark isMount Etna, which, at 3,350m (10,990ft), isthe tallest activevolcano in Europe and one of the most active inthe world. The island has a typicalMediterranean climate.

The earliestarcheological evidence of human dwelling on theisland dates from as early as 8000 BC. At around 750 BC, Sicily was host to anumber of Phoenician andGreek colonies, and for the next 600 years, itwas the site of theGreek–Punic andRoman–Punic wars, which ended with theRomandestruction ofCarthage. After the fall of theRoman Empire in the 5th century AD, Sicilyfrequently changed hands, and during the early Middle Ages, it was ruled in turnby the Vandals,Ostrogoths,Byzantines,Arabs andNormans. Later on, theKingdom of Sicily lasted between 1130 and 1816,first subordinated to the crowns ofAragon,Spain, and theHoly Roman Empire, and then finally unifiedunder theBourbons withNaples, as theKingdom of the Two Sicilies. Following theExpedition of the Thousand, aGiuseppe Garibaldi-led revolt during theItalian Unification process and a plebiscite,it became part of Italy in 1860. After thebirth of the Italian Republic in 1946, Sicilywas given special status as an autonomous region.

Sicily has a rich and unique culture, especially with regard to thearts,music,literature,cuisine andarchitecture. It also holds importance forarcheological and ancient sites such as theNecropolis of Pantalica, theValley of the Temples andSelinunte.

The term \"Sicily\" is believed to derive from the radix sik, term ofIndo-Germanic origin that denotes enlargement and growth, and from the suffix-ilia (land). In the Greek language the radix sik is used to identifycertain fruits that grow rapidly as the fig tree (sikè) or pumpkin (sikùs).So Sicily would mean \"the land of fertility, fertility island\".

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