Female Figure / Man-headed Bull
Entella (Sicily) - Litra
Description
Obverse: Female figure (likely Entella, wife of Akestes/Aigestes; perhaps a nymph) standing left, sacrificing from phiale over altar and holding filleted temple key
Reverse: Man-headed bull standing right; fish right in exergue; above ΕΝΤΕΛΛΑ retrograde
This is a rare issue from Entella with distinctive iconography featuring a female figure with temple key and man-headed bull reverse. The only possible identification for the figure comes from Schol. Lycoph. 953, 964 who identifies a Entella as the wife Akestes/Aigestes, himself the son of the likely nymph Segesta/Egesta/Aigeste of Segesta. The suggestion as a nymph comes from the fact that most eponymous female figures of this period in Sicily were nymphs.
Details
| Detail | Value |
|---|---|
| Composition | Silver |
| Issuer | Entella |
| Ruling Authority | Unknown |
| Period of Issue | 440 BC - 430 BC |
| Weight | 0.73 g |
| Diameter | 12.17 mm |
| Orientation | ↑↑ 6h |
| Denomination | Litra |
| Standard | Sicilian Litra |
| References | HGC 2 #235; SNG ANS 3 #1339; Buceti #1a; Winterthur 1 #628 |
Provenance
| Location | Description | Date |
|---|---|---|
| Switzerland | Jul 20, 2025 | |
| United States | Lelouch Collection | Current |