DOI Heft:
Artykuły/Articles
DOI Artikel:Petac, Emanuel; Vîlcu, Aurel: About the Diobols Hoard of Apollonia Pontica and Mesembria Discovered in 1911 in Constanţa (Ancient Tomis)
DOI Seite / Zitierlink:https://doi.org/10.11588/diglit.57341#0053
ABOUT THE DIOBOLS HOARD OF APOLLONIA PONTICA...
by magistrate ZO and also a drachm from the same city, the structure (apparently
including diobols from Mesembria but also hemidrachms from Kallatis) seems to
represent a different situation.34
The hoard from Constanfa 1911 (found just outside the ancient city of Tomis,
not far north of the future Hellenistic wall) seems to reflect a dramatic event which
profoundly affected the city. Archaeological excavations show that a fierce fire
struck the city in the second half of the 4th century BC, a more accurate chronology
of the event being difficult to establish.35 It was connected with the conflict between
the Scythian king Ateas and Macedonian king Philippus II or with the revolt of the West
Pontic city against Lysimachus in 313 BC. Considering the profile of monetary
circulation in the Dobruja region, i.e. the southern part of Romania and the northern
half of Bulgaria, in the second half of the 4th century BC, we have numerous examples
of gold Macedonian coins, especially Alexander type staters. This perhaps suggests
the intensive use of local mercenaries during the Diadochi wars and we suggest that
the hoard from Tomis (Constanfa 1911) was buried after the middle of the 4th century
BC but not after the death of Alexander the Great and the beginning of the Diadochii
wars. The diobols from Apollonia and Mesembria from the hoards discovered in
Dobruja and Eastern Bulgaria are never associated with Macedonian coins which
accompanied local mercenaries in the region. This observation is important because
it offers a strong argument to date the diobol hoards from Apollonia and Mesembria
to before the massive influx of Macedonian coins in the West Pontic region during
the Diadochii wars. Finds show that the revolt against Lysimachus in 313 BC and
his campaign against the West Pontic cities are well documented by gold and silver
Macedonian coin hoards discovered in the area but that these do not include diobols
from Apollonia and Mesembria.36 It would appear that the hoard discovered in
Constanfa (Tomis) in 1911 was buried because of the war from 339 BC between
Philippus II and Ateas, just like the hoard of darics from Orgame (Jurilovca, Tulcea
county, Romania).37 The traces of the catastrophic fire in the archaeological record
of Hellenistic Tomis, attributed either to the war between Philippus II and Ateas in
339 BC or to the revolt in 313 BC against Lysimachus, could be connected rather
to the former.
34 TALMATCHI 2017: 294.
35 BUZOIANU and BÄRBULESCU 2012: 18-20, 122-124.
36 VILCU 2015: 193-208.
37 PETAC, TALMATCHI and IONITA 2011: 331-336.
51
by magistrate ZO and also a drachm from the same city, the structure (apparently
including diobols from Mesembria but also hemidrachms from Kallatis) seems to
represent a different situation.34
The hoard from Constanfa 1911 (found just outside the ancient city of Tomis,
not far north of the future Hellenistic wall) seems to reflect a dramatic event which
profoundly affected the city. Archaeological excavations show that a fierce fire
struck the city in the second half of the 4th century BC, a more accurate chronology
of the event being difficult to establish.35 It was connected with the conflict between
the Scythian king Ateas and Macedonian king Philippus II or with the revolt of the West
Pontic city against Lysimachus in 313 BC. Considering the profile of monetary
circulation in the Dobruja region, i.e. the southern part of Romania and the northern
half of Bulgaria, in the second half of the 4th century BC, we have numerous examples
of gold Macedonian coins, especially Alexander type staters. This perhaps suggests
the intensive use of local mercenaries during the Diadochi wars and we suggest that
the hoard from Tomis (Constanfa 1911) was buried after the middle of the 4th century
BC but not after the death of Alexander the Great and the beginning of the Diadochii
wars. The diobols from Apollonia and Mesembria from the hoards discovered in
Dobruja and Eastern Bulgaria are never associated with Macedonian coins which
accompanied local mercenaries in the region. This observation is important because
it offers a strong argument to date the diobol hoards from Apollonia and Mesembria
to before the massive influx of Macedonian coins in the West Pontic region during
the Diadochii wars. Finds show that the revolt against Lysimachus in 313 BC and
his campaign against the West Pontic cities are well documented by gold and silver
Macedonian coin hoards discovered in the area but that these do not include diobols
from Apollonia and Mesembria.36 It would appear that the hoard discovered in
Constanfa (Tomis) in 1911 was buried because of the war from 339 BC between
Philippus II and Ateas, just like the hoard of darics from Orgame (Jurilovca, Tulcea
county, Romania).37 The traces of the catastrophic fire in the archaeological record
of Hellenistic Tomis, attributed either to the war between Philippus II and Ateas in
339 BC or to the revolt in 313 BC against Lysimachus, could be connected rather
to the former.
34 TALMATCHI 2017: 294.
35 BUZOIANU and BÄRBULESCU 2012: 18-20, 122-124.
36 VILCU 2015: 193-208.
37 PETAC, TALMATCHI and IONITA 2011: 331-336.
51