When Sparta had defeated Athens the Greek cities were again free to mint coins themselves. Cities and stamp cutters vied with one another to produce the finest coins. The best artists lived in Sicily.

Syracuse, through its location and its large natural harbour, open to Greece, was predestined to become the leading power in Sicily. It had been founded by Corinth in one of the first colonial campaigns around 730 BC, the minting of coins beginning in about 520 BC.

The 10-drachm piece was used mainly to pay mercenaries, who received their wages only after their contract had been successfully concluded. A dekadrachm was equivalent to about one month's wages. This coin was produced by the famous stamp cutter Cimon and shows Arethusa, the water nymph of Syracuse. Only the most famous artists of the times signed their works. The dolphin below where the neck is cut off bears the signature: Cimon.