Ionian League Público Deposited
The general term used to designate such coins of the ancients as were put forth by a federation of stales or cities in order to ensure a certain amount, of uniformity so far as types, weight, and fineness were concerned.
The principal one of the Leagues was the Achaean (q.v.).
The AEtolian League issued gold, silver, and bronze B.C. 279-168, and the coins usually have on the reverse a figure of AEtolia, copied from a statue dedicated at Delphi in commemoration of victories over the Gauls and Macedonians.
The Arcadian League was established by Epaminondas against Sparta after the bat- tle of Leuctra, B.C. 371, and under its auspices the city of Megalopolis was founded. At this place the coins of the League were struck.
The coinage of Baeotia was largely a federal currency from the earliest times, and the Baeotian shield is a characteristic feature on the issues. This may possibly refer to the shield of Athena Itonia in the temple of Coroneia, which was the meeting- place of the League. This type disappears after B.C. 288 and the League was dis- solved by the Romans B.C. 146.
The cities of Chalcidice established a League B.C. 392 with Olynthus as head- quarters. The coinage is uniform with tvpes relating to Apollo. It was dissolved circa B.C. 358, when Philip II of Mace- donia captured Chalcidice.
The federal coinage of Euboea was issued at Eretria. It lasted from B.C. 411 to B.C. 336 and nothing was struck during the Macedonian occupation. After the defeat of the Macedonians at Cynoscephalae B.C. 197 the federal coinage was revived until this League was also dissolved by the Ro- mans, B.C. 146.
The Ionian League was a very ancient alliance and originally consisted of the cities of Clazomena?, Colophon, Ephesus, Erythrae, Lebedus, Miletus, Myus, Phoeaea, Priene, Chios, Teos, and Samos. Smyrna was added about B.C. 700. Under Anto- ninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius the above thirteen cities issued bronze coins in cele bration of a festival they jointly held. An alliance, between the rulers of the various Lycian cities gave rise to the Ly- cian League, B.C. 168, and lasted until A.D. 43, when the Emperor Claudius or- ganized Lycia with Pamphylia as a Roman province.
- Frey's Dictionary (American Journal of Numismatics, Vol. 50, 1916)