ITALY. Lucania, Metapontum (c.400-340 B.C.), Silver Stater, 7.73g,. Head of Demeter facing to left, wearing an earring. Rev. [M]ETAΠO[…], ear of barley, a leaf on right with an ivy-leaf above (Noe 522 (these dies); SNG ANS 389 (these dies); HN Italy 1545).
Metapontum was another of the wealthy Greek colonies in Magna Graecia. Throughout the extensive series of staters that Metapontum issued, the ear of barley, to which the city-state owed its wealth, features prominently. Perhaps of most interest however, is the head of Demeter, the goddess of corn, which usually appears on the obverse of the staters. The head of Demeter is consistently represented as a young woman, often engraved in exquisite beauty to a very high degree of artistry.