CYPRUS. Salamis. Nicocles (ca. 374/3-361 BC). AV 1/12 stater or hemihecte (8mm, 0.71 gm, 12h). NGC XF S 5/5 - 4/5. Draped bust of Aphrodite left, wearing ornamented stephane / Head of Athena left, wearing button earring, beaded-necklace, and crested Corinthian helmet, with laurel wreath, pushed back on head. SNG Copenhagen 51 (1/10 stater, 0.71 gm). Markou 321 (this coin, D5/R7). BMC 62-63. Spectacular golden piece with two gorgeous goddess portraits centered on a silky butterscotch flan. From the Wetmore Collection of Gold and Electrum. Ex Kleinkunst Collection (Leu Numismatik, Auction 6, 23 October 2020), lot 264; Sotheby's (9-10 October 1995), lot 204. As an astute ruler during a period of considerable political volatility marked by the decline of Athenian power, Nicocles navigated the complexities of his time with strategic diplomacy. Nicocles replenished the treasury, which had been exhausted by his father's wars, without oppressing his subjects with exorbitant taxes, and behaved in all respects as the model of a mild and equitable ruler. Beyond his political maneuvering, Nicocles also carries a cultural legacy through his association with prominent philosopher and rhetorician Isocrates. Isocrates extoled him for his interest in literature and philosophy, and provided proof of this by noting that Nicocles rewarded him twenty talents (Vit. X. Orat. p. 838, a.) HID09801242017 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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