circa 375-350 BCE
Æ 11 mm, 1,18 g
Obv: Head of Athena left, wearing corinthian helmet.
Rev: ΛEBEΔIΩN.
Prow left.
BMC -; SNG von Aulock -; SNG Copenhagen -; SNG München -; SNG Tübingen -.
Apparently Unpublished
Ancient historians disagreed on who exactly first settled Lebedos, with various statements from Carians to Athenians. Regardless, it was never among the larger or more powerful cities of Aeolis and its coins are relatively uncommon, although not excessively so.
It had a small harbor, hence the prow on the reverse, and perhaps there was something to being settled by Athens, since Athena is on the obverse. Of course, it could have just been paying tribute to Athens at the time. Very few cities that included Athena on their coins were actually settled by Athens.
Pausanias said, presumably from a visit, “The land around Lebedus is a happy one; in particular its hot baths are more numerous and more pleasant than any others on the coast.”
In 304 BCE, Antigonos I Monophthalmos attempted to join Lebedos with Teos, but was unsuccessful. However, in 292 BCE Lysimachos did destroy the city in order to move everyone to Ephesos, according to Strabo.
That did not seem to finally end the city, though, since the Ptolemies later renamed it to Ptolemais and continued under Roman occupation.