LOKRIS. Lokris Opuntii. Circa 338-316 B.C. AR triobol. 2.57 gm. 16 mm. Head of Demeter to right, wearing grain wreath and pendant earring / Ajax advancing right, nude but for Corinthian helmet, holding sword and shield, interior of shield adorned with serpent; kantharos below; ΟΠΟΝΤΙΩΝ. BCD Lokris 98-99. HGC 4, 995. BMC 9-12. Nicolet & Oeconomides Series 4, 129-134. SNG Copenhagen 50. Good Very Fine; attractive lightly iridescent toning; good style.

The Greek hero Ajax "the Lesser" led a fleet of forty ships against Troy. At its fall, he was accused by Odysseus of ravishing Cassandra who had sought refuge in a sanctuary of Athena. On his way home, he was wrecked and killed in a storm supposedly brought down on him by a wrathful Athena. Nonetheless, each year afterward his men honoured him by launching a ship fitted with black sails and laden with gifts, which they then set alight.