Circa 168-30 BCE
Æ 0.79g, 10mm, 1h
Laureate head of Apollo to right /
[ΠΑΤΑ]ΡΕΩΝ, head of Artemis to left, wearing stephane
BMC 5-8; SNG von Aulock 8492; SNG Copenhagen 114; Weber 7289
Patara was the birthplace of Saint Nicholas in 270 CE, long before he became Santa.
There are a number of ruins at the site, though it is currently threatened by illegal developers.
Myth has the city founded by Pataros, who was a son of Apollo and had an oracle to the god that was considered second only to that of Delphi. Supposedly, the oracle only worked during the six winter months.