Hieron II, c 275-215 BC. Sicily Syracuse. Poseidon & Trident. NGC F

Description: Hieron II, c 275-215 BC. Sicily Syracuse. Poseidon & Trident. NGC F. Shipped with USPS First Class. Sicily, Syracuse 27mm. Time of Hieron II, circa 275-215 BC. Diademed head to left / Armoured cavalryman on horseback to right, holding spear; below, IEPNO in exergue. CNS 195, R1 35; HGC 2, 1548. 18.79g, 27mm, 2h. Collectors ticket included.Hiero II(Greek: ; c. 308 BC 215 BC) was the Greek tyrant ofSyracusefrom 275 to 215 BC, and the illegitimate son of a Syracusan noble, Hierocles, who claimed descent fromGelon. He was a former general ofPyrrhus of Epirusand an important figure of theFirst Punic War.[1]He figures in the story of famed thinkerArchimedesshouting "Eureka".On the departure of Pyrrhus fromSicily(275 BC) the Syracusan army and citizens appointed him commander of the troops. He strengthened his position by marrying the daughter of Leptines, the leading citizen. In the meantime, theMamertines, a body ofCampanianmercenaries who had been employed byAgathocles, had seized the stronghold ofMessina, and proceeded in harassing the Syracusans. They were finally defeated in a pitched battle nearMylaealong theLonganusriver by Hiero, who was only prevented from capturing Messina byCarthaginianinterference. His grateful countrymen then made himking(275). In 264 BC he again returned to the attack, and the Mamertines called in the aid ofRome.[2]Hiero at once joined the Punic leaderHanno, who had recently landed in Sicily; but fighting a battle to an inconclusive outcome with the Romans led by theconsulAppius Claudius Caudex, he withdrew to Syracuse.[3] Pressed by the Roman forces, in 263 he concluded a treaty with Rome, by which he was to rule over the south-east of Sicily and the eastern coast as far asTauromenium.[From this time until his death in 215 BC he remained loyal to the Romans, and frequently assisted them with men and provisions during the Punic war.[4]He kept up a powerful fleet for defensive purposes, and employed his famous kinsmanArchimedesin the construction of those engines that, at a later date, played so important a part during thesiege of Syracuse by the Romans. According to a story told byVitruvius,[5]Hiero suspected he was being cheated by the goldsmith to whom he had supplied the gold to make avotive crownfor a temple. He asked Archimedes to find out if all the gold had been used, as had been agreed.Archimedes, on discovering the principle ofdisplacementneeded to measure thedensityof the crown is said to have shouted "eureka, eureka!"while running naked through Syracuse. Vitruvius concludes this story by stating that Archimedes' method successfully detected the goldsmith's fraud; he had taken some of the gold and substituted silver instead

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End Time: 2024-02-14T18:36:08.000Z

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