The Goddess Arethusa on the Coins of Kimon

Since I became a professional numismatist in 1964 I have been strongly drawn to the facing heads on Greek coins. The reading of "Masterpieces of Greek Coinage" by Charles Seltman, published in 1949, was a spiritual experience for me and one I can never forget. This was when I first learned of "Kimon" and his great works. The finest die he ever created was his inspired 3/4-facing head of Arethusa. To create a work of this magnitude not only takes experience, brilliance and skill but there also must be inspiration. Kimon, at the same time, made a second obverse die which is iconographically the same but compared to the die he created, the die he made fails. The eyes are puffy, the face is round, full and has no intelligence, no electricity, no vigor. .

The image is just resting helplessly on the flan. The die Kimon created has different emotion. Arethusa has a full, fresh, well-modeled, somewhat triangular face with strong lips and an almost electric nature to the flowing hair. The eyes, all knowing, intelligent and strong yet kind, are the central feature of the whole face. Let us not forget the dolphins which frolic gracefully in her hair. On her headband the name of her creator Kimon, and above the outer border over her head, her name ARETHUSA. The days it took Kimon to create his Arethusa were inspired days, days which have lasted into the centuries. While this amazing work inspires today, it is not nearly as influential as it was in its own era. I say that not only because it is an original creation but because it has life and created many children.

The first child is Eukleidas' facing Athena. Done at the same time, in the same place, Syracuse, it could well even be a sister. With four dolphins, standard in Syracuse at this time, frolicking in and about her hair, the type is great but not as brilliant and electric as Kimon's Arethusa. Another contemporary is Heracleidas' Apollo from Catania. This work which has a lot of power is elementally the same as Kimon's masterpiece, minus the dolphins, but is somewhat heavy-handed and the god is not nearly as insightful.

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