According to myth, Persephone, daughter of Demeter and Zeus, was abducted on the island of Sicily by her future husband, Hades, god of the underworld. Hence the prominence of her cult on the island. The wreath of grain that surrounds her hair alludes to the great abundance of grain on Sicily, once described as the “granary of Rome”.
On the obverse, head of Persephone with crown of thorns and a torch behind the neck, surrounded by a beaded rim. On the reverse, auriga driving a biga with a whip in his right hand and the reigns in his left hand. On the exergue, the name of the Syracuse tyrant (ΙΕΡΩΝΟΣ).