The Electrum Coinage of Thebes

The electrum coins of Thebes are unique among Boiotian coins for their metal and in having a head of Dionysos as their obverse type. Their rarity and the lack of provenances have inhibited attempts to place them in a historical context other than that of 395 BC suggested by Head, but improvements in our knowledge of Boiotian history and numismatics now suggest that they belong to the 360s and were minted to help achieve Boiotian military hegemony in mainland Greece and the Aegean.