TYPE Ancient Greece, Kios (Bithynia), 340-310 BC, silver hemidrachm (Persic half siglos), 2.45g
DESCRIPTION .
Obv: Laureate head of Apollo r.. Greek KIA below
Rev: War galley, star on it, Greek legend POSEI - DONIOS above and below
REFERENCE: SG 3757v; BMC Pont, p. 130/3-4
GRADING: AEF, rev. test-hole
ORDER INFO: G2649, $175
Choice specimen of late Persic silver (incidentally, still used for a while after its liberation by Alexander the Great) from this illustrious locale, notable in both of mythological and historical contexts. There are several competing myths just about its founding, each crediting its name to different sources - the most interesting being the one connected with the tale of the Argonauts who temporarily landed there on their quest for the Golden Fleece due to a mishap of Herakles and later Hylas; some other Argonauts were left behind to sort out the problem, and they eventually settled there, led by the eponymous legendary founder Kios.