The Ancient Greek Economy. Markets, Households and City-States

CHOOSING AND CHANGING MONETARy STANDARDS 101

Corinthian drachms or to a reduced Aeginetan stater. The Corcyrean stater

is divided into halves, quarters, and so on. This standard was also adopted by

the Ionian islands of Cephallenia and Zacynthus, which both lay south of

Corcyra.^161 Zacynthus is off the coast of Elis where the Aeginetan standard

was used.

The creation of this standard by Corcyra needs to be explained in terms

of its geographical position. Corcyra was the gateway to the Adriatic Sea and

a key point for communications with the West.^162 The island had all sorts of

natural resources^163 and could exploit the rich resources of the coast opposite

the island and develop a network of trade with this area.^164 The coinage of

Corcyra did not travel far and in some cases has been found in hoards buried

in Illyria, southern Italy and Sicily. On the other hand, coins from other cities

are rarely found in hoards buried in Corcyra.^165 Like the wealthy Achaean col-

onies, Corcyra was a closed monetary zone.^166

From Corcyra, we cross the Adriatic Sea to southern Italy and Sicily. Because

the Attic stater shared the same weight with the Corinthian one (8.6 g), the

Attic tetradrachm had the weight of the Euboic stater (17.2 g) and the Euboic

stater began to be divided into fourths before the end of the sixth century BCE,

it is difficult to say which standard was adopted in areas dominated by the col-

onies of Chalkis and Corinth. These areas were Sicily and the Chalcidic pen-

insula.^167 What numismatists consider an Attic tetradrachm for cities of Sicily

and the Chalcidic peninsula could be a Euboean stater, while Attic didrachms

could also be seen as Corinthian staters or Euboean half-staters. This is proved,

as far as the Chalcidic peninsula is concerned, by a silver coin issued with the

types of Sermylia, the weight of a Euboean stater/ Attic tetradrachm and the

legend ΣΤΑΤΕΡ.^168 As far as Sicily is concerned, there is epigraphic evidence

from Akrai of mid-fifth century BCE date.^169

The influence of the Corinthian standard was strong in Sicily, where Corinth

founded Syracuse in 734 BCE. The Dorian colonies of Selinus and Acragas

issued Corinthian staters and later Syracuse struck what could be considered

as a double Corinthian stater or a Euboean stater (Attic tetradrachm).^170 These

cities adopted the Corinthian standard to serve their own needs; these coins

circulated locally, and it is the choice of the standard that reveals the impact of

Corinthian merchant activity in this area. One recalls that these cities issued

their coinages with their own types.

Sicily produced large quantities of grain but also clothing and other

products as cheese and pigs.^171 Euboean, Corinthian and Attic pottery has

often been found in excavations in these areas and points to commercial

relations with Mainland Greece. In Sicily three early hoards contained Attic

tetradrachms; all other hoards with Attic tetradrachms are of much later

date.^172 In the Chalcidic peninsula there is only one hoard that might have

contained Attic tetradrachms; its burial dates from the 420s (CH VIII 63).^173