| Classical Numismatic Group > Triton XXVII | Auction date: 9 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 161 Price realized: 5,000 USD (Approx. 4,580 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | Show similar lots on CoinArchives Find similar lots in upcoming auctions on  |
| Lot description: KINGS of MACEDON. Demetrios I Poliorketes. 306-283 BC. AR Tetradrachm (28mm, 17.26 g, 1h). Pella mint. Struck circa 294-293 BC. Nike standing left on prow of galley left, blowing trumpet she holds in her right hand and cradling stylis in her left arm / BA-ΣIΛEΩ-Σ ΔHMHTPIOY, Poseidon Pelagaios standing left, seen from behind, preparing to throw trident held aloft in his right hand, chlamys draped over extended left arm; monogram to left; to right, dolphin left above star. Newell 68, obv. die LVII; HGC 3, 1012e; SNG München 1042 var. (no dolphin; same obv. die); Dewing 1196 (same obv. die). Toned and lustrous, minor obverse die wear and rust, faint scratches, trace deposits. Superb EF. An exceptionally detailed reverse. Ex North River Collection; Triton IV (5 December 2000), lot 177. The most dashing of Alexander the Great's successors, Demetrios I Poliorketes was the son of the Macedonian general Antigonos Monopthalmos ("one-eyed"), who served both Philip II and Alexander III the Great. After Alexander's death, Demetrios led armies in support of his father's claim to supreme power. He won a major naval victory in 306 BC at Salamis against the Ptolemaic fleet and, along with his father, accepted the title Basileos ("king"), ending the fiction that the Diadochi were ruling a united government. This dynamic tetradrachm type, with its depiction of Nike alighting on a prow perhaps inspired by (or inspiring) the famous "Nike of Samothrace" statue, celebrates the victory at Salamis and makes it clear that the foundation of his power rests on his naval forces. Poseidon was Demetrios's patron god, and appeared on the coinages of many of the cities he founded or conquered during his campaigns in Greece. Estimate: 5000 USD |  |
