SICILY, Syracuse. Republic. 214-212 BC. AR 8 Litrae (23mm, 6.79 gm). Helmeted head of Athena left /
SURAKOSIWN, winged thunderbolt;
XA. SNG ANS 1045; Burnett 94 . Toned, near EF.
The Syracusan ruler Hieron II, a loyal ally of Rome, died in 215 BC while the Romans were locked in a life-and-death struggle with Hannibal of Carthage. His son, Gelon, had predeceased him so the throne of Syracuse passed to his grandson, Hieronymos, a youth of only fifteen. The Carthaginian faction in Syracuse persuaded the new ruler to renounce the Roman alliance which his grandfather had so steadfastly maintained, but this soon resulted in a revolution at Syracuse in which Hieronymos and all the members of his family perished (214 BC). The young king had reigned for a mere thirteen months. Democratic government was now reestablished but the following year the Romans laid siege to the city and it was sacked following its fall in 211, thus bringing to an end almost three centuries of Syracusan preeminence in the affairs of Greek Sicily. The three-year period of the restored democracy saw a surprisingly large and varied output of coinage, all the more remarkable as the city was under siege by the Romans throughout most of this episode. Principally in silver, with denominations based on the traditional Sicilian unit of the litra, the coinage of the Fifth Republic has some attractive and interesting types.
