Obolos 16

ISLANDS OFF ATTICA, Aegina. Circa 525-475 BC. Stater (Silver, 18 mm, 12.20 g), "Small skew" reverse. Sea turtle; banker's mark: kotyle?. Rev. Incuse square divided into five triangles. HGC 6, 431. Meadows Group IIb. Struck on an irregular flan, otherwise, fine.

From the Vineyard Collection, acquired in 1999.

Although the banker's mark here lacks the typical handles, it appears to be a Greek krater or vase used for diluting wine with water (the Greeks, being sophisticated, drank their wine diluted with water and usually infused with herbs, whereas uncouth individuals, especially their barbarian neighbors, drank their wine neat). Kraters were made from either metal or pottery and were usually ornately decorated. They generally stood on a tripod in the dining room where men held symposia, or drinking parties, often with entertainment in the form of music, poetry, and acrobatic performances, and sometimes with more ribald acts.