Damastion - Its foundation and the beginning of its coinage

Sa？etak The existence of a city called Damastion, situated near notable silver mines deep in the Balkan hinterlands, has been known from a passage in Strabo’s Geography (7.7.8) and from its abundant silver coinage spread over the central and western Balkan regions. However, the scarceness of information kept many features of this city enigmatic. This paper explores an augmentation of Strabo’s passage 8.6.16 on Aegina, which shows that Damastion was a Greek foundation, and examines the historical setting of its founding and the beginning of its coinage. The results suggest that the foundation of Damastion occurred during the Peloponnesian War, most probably shortly after the Peace of Nicias (421 B.C.), and that the beginning of the coinage of Damastion may be dated ca. 395 B.C