Lot 2694. VF, rare and historical. 26.6 grams. Est. $1500.

This coin represents the actual Temple of Artemis at Ephesus, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World.

Ex. Kovacs.

Caracalla AE35 of Ephesos, Ionia. 

obv: AV M AVP ANTWNEINOC CE, laureate, draped & cuirassed bust right 
rev: DIC NEWKORWN EFECCIWN, octostyle Temple of Artemis, statue within.

By permssion of ancientcoinart.com, November, 2002.

Conceived by architect Chersiphron and his son, Metagenes, the
 temple's inner space featured a double row of at least 106
 columns, each believed to be 40 to 60 feet high. The foundation
 was approximately 200 feet by 400 feet. 
<p>
<img src="http://xamyn.com/Diana/Temple_at_Ephesus.jpg">
<p>
 The original temple burned in 356 B.C. and was rebuilt on the
 same foundation. Fire devastated the second temple in 262 A.D.,
 but its foundation and some debris have survived. The British
 Museum in London counts some of the second temple's sculptures
 among its treasures. 
<p>
 Diana was the daughter of Jupiter, the Chief God and the twin sister of Apollo. Her mother, Latona, was one
 of Jupiter's paramours. When Diana was born her mother bore her painlessly, and then Diana helped her
 mother deliver Apollo, thus making Diana the Patroness of Childbirth.
 As a child Jupiter asked Diana what she
 like to have as gifts. She replied that she
 wanted eternal virginity (in the sense of
 always being true to her own nature), as
 many names as Apollo, a bow and arrow
 like Apollo's, the office of bringing light
 (providing guidance to others), a saffron
 tunic with a red hem, and nine nymphs as
 her maidens.

 Diana was believed to hunt in the moonlight with her hounds. She can see clearly in the dark, guided by the
 moon (her own intuition).
Caracalla AE35 of Ephesos, Ionia. AV M AVP ANT<font face="SYMBOL">W</font>NEINOC CE, laureate, draped & cuirassed bust right / <font face="SYMBOL">DI</font>C <font face="SYMBOL">NEWKORWN EFE</font>CC<font face="SYMBOL">IWN</font>, octostyle Temple of Artemis, statue within.