300-270 BCE
AR Stater 9.69g
Zeus Diktaios sitzt l. auf der Rechten Adler, in der Linken Zepter, die Hüften von Himation bedeckt
In Punktkreis: Protome eines kretischen Ziegenbockes l. zurückblickend.
Le Rider Pl. XXX, 18; Svoronos 25, Pl. XXVII, 25; Slg. Traeger -, vergl. 342
In ancient times, Praisos was founded by Eteo-Cretans, the original inhabitants of Crete, and was the site of the temple to Diktaian Zeus, which was named for nearby Mount Dicte. It was also the location of a ceremony, which according the Athenaios was:
“In Crete they tell the story that the birth of Zeus occurred on Mount Dicte, where there is a secret rite. For it is said that a sow offered suck to Zeus, and as she roved about, she, by her own grunting, caused the infant’s whimpering to be inaudible to the passers-by. Hence this creature is universally regarded with great reverence, and no one, Agathocles says, would eat of its flesh. The people of Praesus even offer sacrifices to the pig, and this rite is regularly observed by them before the marriage ceremony.”
The site has been found and there are some remains left.