| Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. > Buy or Bid Sale 226 | Auction date: 13 February 2024 |
| Lot number: 318 Price realized: Unsold | |
| Lot description: Attica, Athens Obol. ; Attica, Athens Obol; c. 545-515 BC, Obol, 0.60g. Seltman pl. 4, SNG Cop-8. Obv: Four-spoked wheel. Rx: Irregular incuse. Ex Salton Collection, with ticket.This the most frequently found of the first issues of silver coins by Athens, showing a wheel . aVF Estimate: 1200 USD |  |
Match 1:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XXX | Auction date: 21 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 433 Price realized: 24,000 GBP (Approx. 30,403 USD / 27,992 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Domitian AV Aureus. Rome, AD 82-83. IMP CAES DOMITIANVS AVG P M, laureate head to right / IVPPITER CONSERVATOR, eagle, with spread wings and head to left, standing facing perched on thunderbolt. RIC II.1 143b; C. 319; BMCRE 51; BN 49 var. (wings raised); Calicó 895. 7.74g, 21mm, 6h. Good Extremely Fine. Very Rare. Ex G.T. Collection of the Twelve Caesars, Roma Numismatics Ltd., Auction XX, 30 October 2020, lot 501; Ex Numismatica Ars Classica AG, Auction 100, 29 May 2017, lot 462 (hammer: CHF 32,000). The aquila (eagle) has long been regarded as one of the most ancient and enduring emblems of the Roman people. Its importance to the Romans derives from its association with Jupiter, supreme deity of the Roman pantheon, revered as the patron of the Roman state since the earliest days of the kings. Stemming ultimately from the Greek tradition of the 'aetos dios' being the personal messenger and companion of Zeus, its mythological history is uncertain, and the surviving sources are very late; according to Antoninus Liberalis (Metamorphoses VI), c. AD 100-300, it was once a mortal king name Periphas, renowned for his just and noble rule, transformed by Zeus and made king of the birds. Fulgentius (Mythologiarum Libri III), c. AD 475-525 relates the eagle as being a creation of the primordial goddess Gaia, appearing before Zeus at the start of the Titanomachy, the great war between the Olympian gods and their predecessors the Titans, which Zeus took to be a favourable omen of victory leading him to adopt the eagle as his own attribute: "for so happy an omen, especially since victory did ensue, he made a golden eagle for his war standards and consecrated it to the might of his protection, whereby also among the Romans, standards of this kind are carried." Frequently employed as a representative motif with protective connotations invoking the divine assistance of Jupiter (hence the thunderbolt it often clutches), the eagle itself was associated with strength, courage and far-sightedness, on account of which qualities it was readily adopted by the Roman military as a legionary ensign along with the wolf, bull, horse and boar (Pliny the Elder, Naturalis Historia X.16). From the second consulship of Gaius Marius in 104 BC, the Aquila became the sole symbol of the Roman legions. On the Roman coinage, the eagle was utilized on some of the earliest issues, appearing on aes signatum (BMC 2, Crawford 4.1a) in the early-mid third century BC, and on the gold coinage issued during the Second Punic War c. 211-207, and subsequently employed sporadically throughout the time of the Republic. Its usage on Imperial coinage after the reign of Augustus is surprisingly limited, but the type was revived by the Flavians for issues of gold and silver, after which time the eagle appears almost invariably either on 'consecration' issues denoting the elevation of an emperor or empress to a status of divinity (as when Zeus sent his eagle to fetch the handsome youth Ganymede to heaven to become the cup-bearer of the gods), or as an adjunct symbol. It would not be until after the fall of the Western Empire that the eagle would once again be featured as the principal type of the coinage of Rome, c. AD 493-534; this municipal coinage would also be the last issued by the ancient Romans in their own name. As such it may be argued that there is a melancholic circularity to the Roman coinage as there is also found in the names of her rulers: as Romulus and Augustus were the first king and first emperor, and Romulus Augustus the last emperor, so too was the eagle boldly imprinted on both the earliest and last coins of Rome. Estimate: 20000 GBP |  |
Match 2:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3113 | Auction date: 8 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 30052 Price realized: 28,000 USD (Approx. 25,525 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients LYDIAN KINGDOM. Croesus (561-546 BC). AV stater (17mm, 8.05 gm). NGC MS 5/5 - 3/5, light scuffs. Croeseid "light" standard, Sardes, ca. 550-546 BC. Confronted foreparts of lion right and bull left, both with outstretched foreleg / Two incuse square punches of unequal size, side by side, with irregular interior surfaces. Carradice 8. BMFA 2073. SNG von Aulock 2875. Shimmering and crisp details on the compact flan. From the Wetmore Collection of Gold and Electrum. Ex Triton XI (8 January 2008), lot 260 (Persian style Kroiseids, Cyrus-Darios I, 545-520 BC). In numismatic circles, Croesus is most famous for introducing the world's first bimetallic standard, issuing coins of both gold and silver. Prior to this, coins were produced in electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver. This situation obviously caused a number of problems, most notably because the proportions of gold to silver were inconsistent. In fact, there is strong evidence to suggest that Croesus' father, Alyattes, artificially manipulated the gold-to-silver ratio in his electrum coins in his favor; the natural occurring electrum in Asia Minor typically has a gold-to-silver ratio of 75%-25%, though his coins were struck with 54% gold and 44% silver. The eminent scholar of early coinage, John Kroll, argues that the gold standard of Croesus was introduced in several stages, designed at recalling as many of the circulating electrum staters as possible. The early electrum staters of Asia Minor were typically struck on a weight standard of 14.15 grams. Considering the relative value of gold to silver at the time was 1:13, then one gold stater of the so-called "heavy" series of King Croesus, based on a weight standard of 10.8 grams, would have been equal to the gold and silver content of one electrum stater, which circulated at an assumed ratio of 75% gold and 25% silver. Kroll argues that the Lydian government used this heavy standard to recall the old electrum coins and reissue the new heavy standard gold coins at a 1:1 ratio. Once a sufficient number had been recalled, the Lydian government issued the new light stater, which weighed approximately 8.05 grams. Kroll continues his argument that this new weight standard was designed to recall as many of the remaining electrum coins as possible, as the 8.05 gram standard is based on the actual gold and silver content of early electrum coins (54% gold and 44% silver). In other words, the heavy standard was used to replace electrum staters at their circulating face value and the light standard was used to recall coins at their actual gold and silver value. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/greek/ancients-lydian-kingdom-croesus-561-546-bc-av-stater-17mm-805-gm-ngc-ms-5-5-3-5-light-scuffs/a/3113-30052.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3113-01082024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 30000-40000 USD |  |
Match 3:
| Classical Numismatic Group > Triton XXVII | Auction date: 9 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 293 Price realized: 27,500 USD (Approx. 25,187 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: ISLANDS off CARIA, Rhodos. Rhodes. Circa 408/7-404 BC. AR Tetradrachm (22.5mm, 15.35 g, 12h). Head of Helios facing slightly right / Rose in profile, with bud to right; POΔION above; to left, sphinx seated left; all within incuse square. Hecatomnus 35a (A23/P30) = Bérend, Tétradrachmes 28 (this coin, illustrated in Bérend); Ashton 4; SNG Keckman –; Karl –; SNG von Aulock –; SNG Copenhagen –; BMC 11; HGC 6, 1417. Iridescent tone, traces of die rust. Good VF. Well centered and in high relief. Very rare issue, one of only 16 examples noted by Ashton (in Hecatomnus). Ex Peus 401 (3 November 2010), lot 388; Triton VIII (11 January 2005), lot 477; Leu 72 (12 May 1998), lot 275; Numismatica Ars Classica 9 (16 April 1996), lot 344; 1971 Marmaris Hoard (IGCH 1209). The polis of Rhodes was created out of a synoecism of the cities of Ialysos, Kamiros, and Lindos in 408/7 BC, and immediately began to issue a series of coinage that endured until the Roman era. The rose was chosen as the perennial reverse type, a punning allusion to the city's name. The obverse type was usually the head of Helios, the patron deity of the new polis, but occasionally the nymph Rhodos appeared. Until the end of the Rhodian series, these types adorned the coins, with a few exceptional issues that featured novel designs. The Chian standard was employed, although after a reduction in the late 340s, the standard is commonly called 'Rhodian.' The first issue of Rhodian coinage was a brief, yet large issue of tetradrachms, that stand among the finest pieces of Classical Greek art. On the obverse, the head of Helios is displayed in a nearly frontal position. Such facing head coins were not novel by this time, but the boldness of the design and the particularly high relief of the dies sets the Rhodian coinage apart from all others. Moreover, this facing head type was the standard obverse type for most of the Rhodian issues. The tetradrachm was the primary denomination until the later 4th century, when the didrachm became preeminent. Both of these denominations were supplemented by a wide variety of fractions, in both silver and bronze, and the tetradrachm was also issued on occasion after the 4th century. Around 190 BC, the coinage system was completely reorganized, with the primary denomination being the drachm, struck on a standard called 'plinthophoric' for the square incuse around the reverse type (plinthos = brick or ingot). Gold coinage was issued on only very rare occasions, and not until the 2nd century BC. As noted by Ashton, the coinage was issued fairly regularly, with occasional spikes in production that correlate to either construction work (e.g. the building of the Colossus) or military necessity. As a primary trading center in the Mediterranean, it is not surprising that the bulk of the coinage of Rhodes appears to have been used for regular state expenditure, such as maintaining its fleet, paying mercenaries, making contributions to the Nesiotic League (revived by Rhodes circa 200 BC), paying state officials, and maintaining a system that cared for its needy citizens (Ashton, pp. 96-7). The massive amount of coinage struck by Rhodes is evidenced by the adoption of the Rhodian weight standard by many other cities in the Hellenistic period, as well as the large amounts of Rhodian coins found in hoards today. Estimate: 5000 USD |  |
Match 4:
| Roma Numismatics Ltd > Auction XXX | Auction date: 21 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 171 Price realized: 750 GBP (Approx. 950 USD / 875 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Thraco-Macedonian, Uncertain mint in the lower Strymon valley EL 1/48 Stater. Late 6th century BC, under Athenian influence. Owl standing to left, head facing with prominent eyes / Rough incuse square. Unpublished in the standard references; for early Macedonian electrum issues, cf. Svoronos, HPM pp. 183-91 and pl. 16, 1-24. 0.29g, 5mm. Extremely Fine. Unique and unpublished. Ex Roma Numismatics Ltd., Auction XXV, 22 September 2022, lot 296 (hammer: GBP 1,700). Coinage was introduced into the Thraco-Macedonian region, between the rivers Strymon and Nestos, in the last decades of the sixth century by the early Greek venturers and colonists. The richly wooded landscape could provide timber for shipbuilding as well as the equally attractive gold and silver of Mt. Pangeion, said to have been discovered first by the Phoenicians, then systematically mined by the local Thracian tribes. Athens in particular is well known to have enjoyed a significant income from mines of the Strymon area controlled by the tyrant Pisistratos, who after his exile in 556 BC, returned to Athens and subsequently oversaw the introduction of coinage with the unmistakable owl of Athena symbol from about 545 BC (cf. ACGC 165; HGC 4, 1603). The head facing owl became the standard reverse type of Athens from about 525 BC and during the height of the Delian League led by Athens became the most popular coin type in Asia Minor and the Persian-dominated Near East, universally as known as glaux (γλαύξ, little owl). Estimate: 1250 GBP |  |
Match 5:
| Harlan J. Berk, Ltd. > Buy or Bid Sale 227 | Auction date: 14 May 2024 |
| Lot number: 289 Price realized: This lot is for sale in an upcoming auction - Bid on this lot  | |
| Lot description: Attica, Athens. Tetradrachm; Attica, Athens; 515-510 BC, Tetradrachm, 17.20g. So called "Civic Mint", Seltman-345 A 227/P290. Only one recorded. Similar to Svoronos pl. 6, 12-20. Obv: Helmeted head of Athena right with full crest. Rx: Owl standing right, head front; olive sprig at upper left, ΑΘΕ downwards on right, all in incuse square.This is one of the earliest coins of Athens, with multiple-leaf olive branch and a highly unusual owl, as well as a beautiful archaic image of Athena, perfectly centered . EF Estimate: 17500 USD |  |
