The numismatic chronicle and journal of the Royal Numismatic Society

88 E. S. G. ROBINSON.
remarkable that whereas the early years of the period,
say down to about 420, seem to be empty at Gyrene and
full at Barce, after the end of the century the positions
are reversed. There are very few coins of Barce that
we can put later than c. 390, nor does the city share in
the plentiful gold issue of the fourth century. Some
pieces have no ethnic, and in such cases it is almost
impossible to decide by style to which city they belong,
unless they bear an already familiar magistrate's name.
The omission of the ethnic is curious, and seems to be
quite arbitrary. Throughout the previous period its
presence on all tetradrachms and almost all subdivisions
is constant.
In the earlier part of this period (say down to
c. 390) small denominations are much rarer than in the
latter. 68 In addition to the drachm, the hemidrachm,
and the obol, we find a coin of about 15 grs., presum-
ably a trihemiobol (see below, p. 95).
Barce.
32. Obv. Silphium plant with two whorls and seven
umbels.
Rev. Head of bearded Ammon laureate r.; IAMSAQ }.
B. M. jR. 1. Wt. 195-7. Samian tetradrachm.
The severity of the treatment, the formality of the.
hair and beard, mark this coin as transitional. It
forms with another in the British Museum and a coin
(from the same die) in Paris a group which must stand
at the head of the series of tetradrachms of Samian
weight.
Another group may also be mentioned which looks
18
This is even more the case at Gyrene than at Barce.