v59_0151 - CIRENAICA - EVESPERIDES Drachme

CYRENAICA - EVESPERIDES

(5th century BC)

Evespérides (Hespéris) is the westernmost city of the province of Cyrenaica at the entrance to the Great Syrte near a lake, the Triton, and a river, the Lathon. The region was renowned for its fertility and the city for its opulence. The Garden of the Hesperides was located there in mythology. The city was refounded in the 5th century BC around 460 BC by inhabitants of Cyrene and its king Arcésilas IV who was fleeing their city. It followed the destiny of its metropolis, became a free city and Democracy was established in the second half of the 4th century. She was often the victim of Libyan raids. The city was even besieged in 413 BC and delivered by the Greeks. The city changed its name under the Lagide domination under Ptolemy III, taking the name of his wife Berenice. It is today the city of Benghazi.