{"id":5928,"date":"2025-11-29T17:43:30","date_gmt":"2025-11-29T17:43:30","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/prodotto\/civetta\/"},"modified":"2026-08-18T11:38:17","modified_gmt":"2026-08-18T11:38:17","slug":"the-athenian-owl","status":"publish","type":"product","link":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/prodotto\/the-athenian-owl\/","title":{"rendered":"The Athenian Owl"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t<div data-elementor-type=\"product-post\" data-elementor-id=\"5928\" class=\"elementor elementor-5928 elementor-5281\" data-elementor-post-type=\"product\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"wd-negative-gap elementor-section elementor-top-section elementor-element elementor-element-698e491 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default wd-section-disabled\" data-id=\"698e491\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-top-column elementor-element elementor-element-73a0a3d\" data-id=\"73a0a3d\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<section class=\"wd-negative-gap elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-9c57b33 elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default wd-section-disabled\" data-id=\"9c57b33\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-cffe69e\" data-id=\"cffe69e\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-c0390ad color-scheme-inherit text-left elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"c0390ad\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t<style>\/*! elementor - v3.20.0 - 11-03-2024 *\/\n.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-stacked .elementor-drop-cap{background-color:#69727d;color:#fff}.elementor-widget-text-editor.elementor-drop-cap-view-framed .elementor-drop-cap{color:#69727d;border:3px solid;background-color:transparent}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap{margin-top:8px}.elementor-widget-text-editor:not(.elementor-drop-cap-view-default) .elementor-drop-cap-letter{width:1em;height:1em}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap{float:left;text-align:center;line-height:1;font-size:50px}.elementor-widget-text-editor .elementor-drop-cap-letter{display:inline-block}<\/style>\t\t\t\t<div class=\"tVu25\"><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"nH aqk aql bkL\"><div class=\"nH bkK\"><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"nH ar4 z\"><div class=\"aeI\"><div class=\"AO\"><div id=\":3\" class=\"Tm aeJ cgjhk\"><div id=\":1\" class=\"aeF\"><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"nH\" role=\"main\"><div class=\"nH g\"><div class=\"nH a98 iY\"><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"aHU hx\"><div role=\"list\"><div class=\"h7 ie\" tabindex=\"-1\" role=\"listitem\" aria-expanded=\"true\"><div class=\"Bk\"><div class=\"G3 G2\"><div id=\"avWBGd-0\"><div id=\"avWBGd-1\"><div class=\"adn ads\" data-message-id=\"#msg-f:1855137171848318076\" data-legacy-message-id=\"19bec56dc9a44c7c\"><div class=\"gs\"><div class=\"\"><div id=\":ok\" class=\"ii gt\"><div id=\":ol\" class=\"a3s aiL\"><div id=\"avWBGd-17\"><div><div id=\"model-response-message-contentr_612897bfa6b0d64b\" class=\"markdown markdown-main-panel md-content enable-luminous-fast-follows enable-updated-hr-color stronger\" dir=\"ltr\" aria-busy=\"false\" aria-live=\"polite\"><div>This silver brooch is inspired by an iconic ancient Greek coin: the Athenian tetradrachm. Athenian coinage owes the introduction of major initiatives and reforms to the figure of Solon, including the establishment of metrological and weight standards that set the drachma (or &#8220;drachm&#8221;) to a stable standard weight of 4.36 grams. One-sixth of a drachma, weighing 0.72 g, was known as an obol, while its double and quadruple multiples were called the didrachm (8.72 g) and tetradrachm (17.44 g), respectively. These coins featured a variety of symbols on their obverse, inspired by the coats of arms of noble Athenian families and the cultural imagery of the era: depicted are amphorae, wheels, bull protomes, gorgons, and much more, including the famous owl\u2014so iconic that it still appears today on the 1-Euro coin issued by modern Greece.<\/div><br \/><div>The owl tetradrachm, in its various iterations, was minted starting in the 6th century BC and became the most widely recognized Greek coin in the ancient world, as well as one of the most popular archaeological coins in our contemporary imagination, even among non-experts.<\/div><br \/><div>The obverse featured the helmeted head of Athena, while the reverse showcased one of the goddess\u2019s favorite animals: the owl itself. Rendered in profile with its head facing front, the owl is flanked by the inscription &#8220;Athe&#8221; in Greek lettering, an abbreviation for <i data-path-to-node=\"2\" data-index-in-node=\"266\">Athenaion<\/i>, meaning &#8220;of the Athenians.&#8221; The figure is completed by an olive sprig in the upper left corner and is enclosed in a square incuse square that was impressed onto the hot metal blanks by the <i data-path-to-node=\"2\" data-index-in-node=\"466\">malliator<\/i>, the artisan who struck the hammer die onto the anvil die. Given the heavy weight of the tools and the tiny size of the metal blanks, achieving perfect centering was difficult. Thus, it is entirely normal for ancient coins to feature off-center imagery, leaving portions of the coin blank.<\/div><br \/><div>This effect has been beautifully captured by Nymph\u00e8, who chose to faithfully reproduce this detail in the brooch. The border enclosing the owl is shifted to the left along with the amaranth-red field, leaving a silver &#8220;slice&#8221; on the right side of the brooch. The details are remarkably fine, serving as a reminder of the skill required to work metal and craft small, finely made objects.<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"yj6qo\">\u00a0<\/div><div class=\"adL\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div id=\"avWBGd-18\" class=\"WhmR8e\" data-hash=\"0\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"ajx\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><div class=\"gA gt acV\"><div class=\"gB xu\"><div class=\"mVCoBd\">\u00a0<\/div><div class=\"ip iq\"><div class=\"pLw6bb\">\u00a0<\/div><div id=\"avWBGd-19\" class=\"bJvOmf\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div>\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"nH btDi4d\"><div><div><div class=\"amr\"><div class=\"nr wR\"><div class=\"amn\"><div class=\"wrsVRe\" data-position=\"dynamic\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"l2\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"nH\"><div class=\"aUx\"><div class=\"bAw bcf it\"><div class=\"brC-dA-I-Jw\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div><div class=\"vY nq\">\u00a0<\/div><div><div>\u00a0<\/div><\/div><div class=\"T-ays T-ays-avH\" role=\"tooltip\"><div class=\"T-ays-iP\">\u00a0<\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<section class=\"wd-negative-gap elementor-section elementor-inner-section elementor-element elementor-element-afdd50e elementor-section-boxed elementor-section-height-default elementor-section-height-default wd-section-disabled\" data-id=\"afdd50e\" data-element_type=\"section\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-container elementor-column-gap-default\">\n\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-column elementor-col-100 elementor-inner-column elementor-element elementor-element-05c23d8\" data-id=\"05c23d8\" data-element_type=\"column\">\n\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-wrap elementor-element-populated\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-element elementor-element-fd04d81 color-scheme-inherit text-left elementor-widget elementor-widget-text-editor\" data-id=\"fd04d81\" data-element_type=\"widget\" data-widget_type=\"text-editor.default\">\n\t\t\t\t<div class=\"elementor-widget-container\">\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p data-path-to-node=\"1\">The mythical coin of Athens known as the Owl\u2014the most famous Greek coin of the ancient world\u2014is transformed into a piece of jewelry, rendered in a truly unique and original design!<\/p>\n<p data-path-to-node=\"2\">Born from a design freely inspired by the tetradrachm featuring the owl and its variants, it was minted starting in the 6th century BCE. It became not only the most renowned Greek coin in antiquity, but also one of the most widely recognized archaeological coins in our modern imagination, even among non-experts.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":5308,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false},"product_cat":[535,547],"product_tag":[601,501,530,485,602,532,603,604,605,606,607],"class_list":["post-5928","product","type-product","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","product_cat-archeologia-greca-en","product_cat-collezione-monete-en","product_tag-antica-atene-en","product_tag-antichita-en","product_tag-archeologa-en","product_tag-archeologia-en","product_tag-archeologia-greca-en","product_tag-archeologo-en","product_tag-atena-en","product_tag-atene-en","product_tag-civetta-en","product_tag-greece-en","product_tag-greek-en","first","instock","taxable","shipping-taxable","purchasable","product-type-simple"],"acf":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/5928","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/product"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=5928"}],"version-history":[{"count":4,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/5928\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6007,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product\/5928\/revisions\/6007"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/5308"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=5928"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"product_cat","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_cat?post=5928"},{"taxonomy":"product_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.nymphe.it\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/product_tag?post=5928"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}