jahrbuch numismatik geldgeschichte - Bayerische Numismatische ...

Jahrbuch f. Numismatik u. Geldgeschichte 37/38, 1987/88 23DAVID MACDONALD(Normal, Illinois, USA)The Significance of the "Boiotian League/Chalkis" Silver Issue(1 Figure)A rare issue of silver staters has provoked much speculation about the earlyrelations of the Boiotian League and Chalkis:'Obv.: "Boiotian" shield decorated with "Euboian" Chi (Y).Rev.: Wheel of four spokes in shallow incuse square.Specimens: Two recorded, Paris (from Taranto Hoard, 1902), Berlin.Weights: 16.80 g (Paris), 16.20 g-clipped (Berlin).Denomination: Stater of "Euboian" standard (Fig. 1).Fig. 1. Shield/wheel stater. Paris specimen (natural size).The argument is as follows:2 The issue is of Euboian weight standard andclosely resembles other issues struck by Chalkis during the second half of thesixth century B.C. The obverse bears upon the shield the initial letter of thename of Chalkis, using the Chalkidian form of the letter. The coins do notresemble early Boiotian coinages in style or in weight standard. The issue,thus, may be attributed with confidence to Chalkis rather than to any Boiotianmint.The obverse type, however, is specifically Boiotian. The Boiotian shieldwas used uniformly as the obverse type for the coinages of the Boiotian' Berlin specimen: F. Imhoof-Blumer, Monnaies grecques, Paris and Leipzig 1883, p. 221 no.55; E. Babelon, Un Obole au nom d'Hippias, Corolla Numismatica, London, New York,and Toronto 1906, 6; E. Babelon, Traite des monnaies grecques et romaines, Paris 1907, Vol.II Part 1, p. 974 no. 1372; Paris specimen: E. Babelon, Trouvaille de Tarente, RNum 1912,p. 10 no. 18.2Babelon, "Obole", p. 6; Babelon, "Trouvaille de Tarente", p. 10 no. 18; C.M. Kraay, Archaicand Classical Greek Coins, Berkeley and Los Angeles 1976, 91, 109; W.P. Wallace, TheEarly Coinages of Athens and Euboia, NumChr 1962, 38-40, particularly p. 38 n. 2.