Poimanenon (AD 244-249) AE 26 - Otacilia Severa

Otacilia Severa, Augusta, 244-249 AD. AE26 (11.38g, 9h). Draped bust right, wearing stephane / Artemis advancing right, drawing bow from quiver and holding bow; at feet, hound leaping right. VF, brown patinas. Extremely rare. Ex CNG 51 (9/1999), lot 870.

Artemis and her twin Apollo were the children of Zeus and Leto. A confirmed virgin, Artemis inhabited the woodland areas with her followers, hunting wild animals and scrupulously avoiding male company. She can be seen with her hunting-dog at her side, and the symbol most often associated with her is the stag, a possible association with the myth of Actaeon. At Ephesus the Artemesion, a huge temple complex whose initial construction dated back to the Bronze Age, and which was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World, was her major cultic shrine.