The Coinage of Thurium in Context: Die-study and Evaluation

Thurium is one of the most important Greek colonies in Magna Graecia, both for its connections to other cities in the Western Mediterranean and in the Greek motherland and for its innovative coinage. The project will study those coins and arrange them as a modern die-study for the first time. Building on this, the rhythm and quantification of coin production are going to be connected with the citys history. Furthermore, the project will investigate how the coins of the polis of Thurium were connected to the history of Magna Graecia in the Classical and Hellenistic period. Not only will the study on the coins of Thurium fulfill a desideratum for numismatists: by contextualizing the numismatic material, including coin finds, with written and other material sources, the project will also set within the confines of Magna Graecia a new standard of using coins for historio-economic analyses.

Thurioi is one of the most important Greek colonies in Magna Graecia, both for its connections to other cities and its highly innovative coinage. However, the current documentation and understanding of Thurian coins have not yet reached the level achieved for other cities of similar importance. These deficiencies have so far hindered the comprehension of the political and economic structures in Magna Graecia. The coinage of Thurium has been studied and arranged in the form of a die-study. The rhythm and quantification of coin production have been connected with the city's history. Furthermore, the project has investigated how the coins of the polis of Thurium were linked to the history of Magna Graecia in the Classical and Hellenistic periods. For the first part of this project, namely the die-study, the Department of Numismatics and Monetary History already contained an extensive amount of preparatory material, which enabled the project's initiation: approximately 4,000 photographs of Thurian coins, arranged in a preliminary catalog, were entrusted to the department by Michael Metlich. For the first part of the project, the die study, the Department of Numismatics and Monetary History at the University of Vienna already possessed an extensive collection of preparatory material that significantly facilitated the project's initiation: approximately 4,000 photographs of Thurian coins were entrusted to the department by the Viennese numismatist Michael Metlich. In addition, the project identified, gathered and analyzed over 8,000 more coins from museums, private collections, and the art trade. The focus was on coins with fully traceable provenance and known find context. Building on this work, the following objectives were pursued: (1) preparation of a die study and the establishment of relative and absolute chronologies using numismatic (e.g., overstrikes, hoard finds) and historical methods. (2) Interpretation of Thurian coin types in terms of identity, economy, and artistic influences; evaluation of the adoption of these types in Italy and beyond. (3) Analysis of mint administration, the rhythm of coin production, and quantification (i.e., the number of coins issued). (4) Comparison and interpretation of the circulation of Thurian coins in southern Italy, Sicily, and beyond; analysis of their circulation in Thurioi and comparison with other cities in southern Italy. (5) Historical and economic analysis of the coin finds. With the project 'The Coinage of Thurium in Context: Die-Study and Evaluation,' a comprehensive reference work on one of the most important mints of the Classical and Hellenistic periods has now been made available for the first time. The project provides new foundations not only for the numismatic study of the Western Greeks-the Greek colonies in present-day Italy-but also for addressing historical and archaeological questions about the political and cultural development of the region.