Phillips.l U" [Feb. 7, 



and the Autonomous scries had long disappeared, the only circulating 

 medium was the Roman coinage, now became barbarous in the extreme, 

 and small in number.* 



The exhibition of coins is in a standing case near the centre of the main 

 room. Naturally it stars with the earliest of all known coinage (about 700 

 B. C), the Persian Daric, of which an example in silver is shown. It 

 hears on the obverse a kneeling archer, while the reverse is simply the 

 rude punch mark, such as is found only on the most ancient coinages. It 

 is to these coins that allusion is made in the story told of Agcsilaus having 

 been overcome by thirty thousand archers, meaning that that amount of 

 Persian daric had been expended to procure his defeat. 



Two large silver coins of Athens (known as Tctradrachms from their 

 size), one about 400 B. C, the other perhaps two hundred years later, ex- 

 hibit the modification of type and change of workmanship. On the reverse, 

 the rude archaic owl in bold relief with great staring eyes has given place 

 to a less aggressive bird ; the simple inscription AHll has received in addi- 

 tion the names of the moneyers ; the diota and olive branch lend additional 

 significance to the bird of wisdom. On the obverse, the thoroughly Egyp- 

 tian type of face displayed on the helmeted head of Pallas has been meta- 

 morphosed into the now generally received conventional type of Greek art. 

 In antiquity these coins were known as maidens, referring to the spinster- 

 hood of the goddess represented upon them, and also as "owls," from the 

 figure upon their reverse. In one of the Greek dramas a miser is spoken 

 of as having myriads of owls roosting beneath his roof, meaning that he 

 had large quantities of these coins concealed in his house. 



A fine Cistophorus of Apamea presenting the sacred cista of Dionysos en- 

 veloped by serpents is worthy of particular notice. The eistophori are te- 

 tradrachms, which bear as their generic type a wreath and berries of ivy, 

 surrounding a chest whence issue serpents, being in reference to those car- 

 ried in procession by the Bacchantes in their orgies, especially in Asia 

 Minor, where the snake was revered, and considered as an emblem and 

 tutelary god. 



All the cistophori which exist are tetradrachms of silver, uniform in 

 weight and fineness, and were struck by some one of the following cities, 

 viz: Apamea in Phrygia, Ephesus in Doria, Laodicea in Phrygia, Perga- 

 mos in Mysia, Sardes and Trail es in Ionia. 



They were of such exceeding purity and fineness that the Romans would 

 receive no other coins in payment of the tribute moneys exacted from the 

 cities of Asia Minor ; for this purpose they were coined in great abundance, 

 and in ancient days were very plentiful, although at the present time they 

 have become of quite rare occurrence. 



M. Acilius in his triumph from Corinth, bore in procession 288,000 cis- 

 tophori, Cn.Manlius Vulso, 2.)0,000 ; L. Amilius llegillus, after a victory 

 over the Antioch fleet, 131,000 ; Scipio Asiatica, 331,070. It is probable that 

 these pieces, upon their arrival at Home, by reason of their superior fineness 



*Henin, Numismatique Ancienne, passim. 



