MACEDON. Eion. Circa 460-400 B.C. AR trihemiobol. .79 gm. 10 x 14 mm. Goose standing to right, head reverted; lizard (salamander?) crawling downward to left above, H (formed as retrograde N) below / Quadripartite incuse square. SNG ANS 287-290. Near Extremely Fine; attractive old tone; edge chip at 3' revealing underlying metal (but not interrupting design); well-centered on an unusually broad and irregular flan.

Eion was an important port city that played a vital role in the Peloponnesian War (431-404 B.C.) between the Delian League (Athens and its allies) and the Peloponnesian League led by Sparta. This coinage was minted in large numbers, but nice examples such as this are hard to find. It served the Athenian-Delian League warriors controlling the area after its capture from the Persians c. 475. The curved design, inspired by circular ring stones, resembles scenes found on Archaic Greek intaglios, the type going back to Minoan and Mycenaean times when such designs were often carved on lentil-shaped stones.