Lucania. Thurium. 380-360 BC. AR Dinomos (15,89g, 3h). Noe F14; HN Italy 1805. Old cabinet tone. Of lovely classical style. Insignificant die-break on obverse, otherwise, choice extremely fine. From the E.L. collection; Coin Galleries 1993 (14 April) lot 114; Santamaria 1961 (4 May) lot 23

The head of Athena is probably that of Athena Skyletria, a sea-goddess whose worship appears to have prevailed at many dangerous places on the Bruttian coasts. Concerning the meaning of the bull, there have been several hypotheses. Some take it to be a symbol of Dionysos, others to be the rushing bull indicative of the fountain Thuria from which the city took its name, while others again look upon it as symbolizing the river Krathis, and as merely an artistic development of the bull which was the type of the archaic coins of Sybaris.