The silver nomoi of Neapolis rank among the most elegant and distinctive coinages of Magna Graecia, combining refined classical artistry with imagery deeply rooted in local myth and geography. Struck in the late 4th century BC, this issue belongs to the final flourishing of Neapolitan silver coinage before the city came increasingly under Roman influence.

The obverse portrays the head of a local nymph, traditionally identified with Parthenope, the mythic siren whose body was said to have washed ashore at the site where the city was founded. According to ancient legend, the original Greek settlement in the area was called Parthenope in her honor. The nymph’s serene expression, elaborate earring, and pearl necklace reflect the refined artistic style characteristic of southern Italian engravers of this period.

On the reverse appears the man-headed bull, a powerful and widely used symbol in the coinages of Campania and southern Italy. This hybrid creature represents a river god, most often interpreted as the personification of the river Achelous or a local river deity associated with fertility and abundance. The addition of Nike flying above to crown the bull introduces a note of divine favor and victory, suggesting prosperity, civic success, or perhaps a specific military or political achievement commemorated by the issue.

The ethnic NEOΠOΛITHΣ (“of the Neapolitans”) firmly identifies the issuing authority, while the letters below the bull likely refer to the magistrate or control marks associated with the issue.

Coins of this period reflect Neapolis at a crossroads of cultures. Though founded as a Greek colony, the city was increasingly interacting with Italic peoples and, eventually, the expanding power of Rome. Despite these pressures, Neapolis maintained a strong Greek identity, evident in both its coinage and civic institutions well into the Roman period.

This example is particularly attractive, with pleasing iridescent toning and a reverse strike of uncommon strength for the issue. Its long pedigree, reaching back to the 1980s, further enhances its appeal as a fine representative of the classical coinage of Neapolis.