Very Rare Coin with Kekrops, The Mythical King of Athens, 5th-4th Century BC
From the city of Kyzikos (Cyzicus) in Mysia, an electrum hekte; the obverse with Kekrops holding a branch, a tunny fish is below and the reverse has a quadripartite incuse square. Near Extremely Fine and Very Rare.
Kekrops (Cecrops) was a mythical king of Athens who, according to Eusebius reigned for fifty years. The name is not of Greek origin according to Strabo, or it might mean 'face with a tail.' It is said that, born from the earth itself, Kekrops had his top half shaped like a man and the bottom half in serpent or fish-tail form. He was the founder and the first king of Athens itself, though preceded in the region by the earth-born king Actaeus of Attica. Cecrops was a culture hero, teaching the Athenians about marriage, reading and writing, and ceremonial burial.
