| Áureo & Calicó > Auction 429 | Auction date: 14 March 2024 |
| Lot number: 2 Price realized: 24,000 EUR (Approx. 26,132 USD) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ptolemaic Egypt. Arsinoe II (285-246 BC). Octodrachm. (S. 7768) (BMC. VI, 10). Very beautiful. Certificate of the French Ministry of Culture. Ex Oger et Dumont 06/03/2004, no. 4. Rare, especially in this condition. 27,75 g. S/C. Estimate: 20000 EUR |  |
Match 1:
| Heritage World Coin Auctions > NYINC Signature Sale 3113 | Auction date: 8 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 31036 Price realized: 20,000 USD (Approx. 18,232 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: Ancients PTOLEMAIC EGYPT. Arsinöe II Philadelphus (277-270/268 BC). AV mnaieion or octodrachm (27mm, 27.75 gm, 12h). NGC XF 5/5 - 4/5, Fine Style. Posthumous issue of Alexandria, under Ptolemy II, ca. 253/2 BC. Veiled head of deified Arsinöe II right, wearing diademed stephane and horn of Ammon, scepter surmounted by lotus over left shoulder; Θ in left field, dotted border / APΣINOHΣ-ΦIΛAΔEΛΦOY, double cornucopia bound with fillet, containing pyramidal cakes, pomegranates, and other fruits, grape cluster hanging from the rim of each horn; dotted border. CPE 388. Svoronos 460. Delicate, Fine Style artistry displayed on a bright flan with flashes of reflective luster. Ex Numismatica Ars Classica, Auction 54 (24 March 2010), lot 141. Gold mnaieions were first struck under the enlightened Ptolemy II (282-246 BC), who built the famous Library of Alexandria and towering Pharos lighthouse. In 279 BC, he married his sister, the beautiful and ambitious Arsinöe II, in the manner of the old Egyptian pharaohs. The sibling marriage scandalized Greek society, which gave Arsinöe the nickname Philadelphus, or "brother-lover." Arsinöe embraced the term, making it part of her royal title, and she proudly placed it on her coinage. Arsinöe's regal profile, veiled and crowned with a jeweled coronet, graces the obverse of most Ptolemaic gold octodrachms. The double-cornucopia on the reverse symbolized both Egypt's abundance and the joint rule of Ptolemy and Arsinöe. Gold coins bearing Arsinöe's portrait continued to be struck for centuries after her death in ca. 270/68 BC. https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/greek/ancients-ptolemaic-egypt-arsinoe-ii-philadelphus-277-270-268-bc-av-mnaieion-or-octodrachm-27mm-2775-gm-12h-/a/3113-31036.s?type=DA-DMC-CoinArchives-WorldCoins-3113-01082024 HID02906262019 © 2023 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved Estimate: 15000-20000 USD |  |
Match 2:
| Classical Numismatic Group > Triton XXVII | Auction date: 9 January 2024 |
| Lot number: 376 Price realized: 45,000 USD (Approx. 41,216 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Arsinoe II Philadelphos. Died 270/268 BC. AR Dekadrachm (34.5mm, 35.62 g, 12h). Alexandreia mint. Struck under Ptolemy II, circa 261/0-253/2 BC. Head right, with ram's horn, veiled and wearing stephane; lotus-tipped scepter in background, AA to left / APΣINOHΣ ΦIΛAΔEΛΦOY, double cornucopia with grape bunches hanging at sides, bound with fillet. CPE 343 (Ptolemy II); Svoronos 937; Troxell, Arsinoe, Group 3, p. 43 and pl. 6, 5 (same obv. die); SNG Copenhagen –; Pozzi 3228 (this coin). Lovely old iridescent tone, a few minor scratches under tone, a couple of tiny nicks on obverse, trace deposits on reverse. Good VF. Very rare, ten examples noted by Troxell, and two additional in CoinArchives. Ex Prof. S. Pozzi Collection (Naville I, 14 March 1921), lot 3228. Arsinoe II, daughter of Ptolemy I and Berenike I, was born in 316 BC. Her early life saw her married off to Lysimachos of Thrace at the age of 15 and then to her half-brother, the brutal Ptolemy Keraunos. She conspired against the latter and was forced to flee circa 280 BC to the protection of Egypt, ruled by her younger full brother, Ptolemy II. Her beauty, charm and intelligence utterly captivated Ptolemy, and, after eliminating his previous wife with an accusation of treason, Arsinoe married her brother, probably about 276 BC. Sibling marriage was traditional among Egyptian royalty but among the Greeks it was known only among deities; thus their union advanced the concept of rulers being worshipped as divinities. Though unscrupulous, Arsinoe proved a capable queen and co-ruler, taking charge of Egypt's foreign affairs. Her death in 270 or 268 BC was marked by her full deification and a huge outpouring of gold and silver coinage bearing her veiled portrait. The ram's horn just visible emerging from the veil is a further symbol of her deification, reminiscent of the horn of Ammon on images of the deified Alexander. Estimate: 20000 USD |  |
Match 3:
| Hess-Divo AG > Auction 341 | Auction date: 13 December 2023 |
| Lot number: 12 Price realized: 110,000 CHF (Approx. 125,528 USD / 116,402 EUR) Note: Prices do not include buyer's fees. | |
| Lot description: SICILY. SYRACUSE. Decadrachm, signed work of the master engraver Euainetos, about 385-370 BC. AR 42.75 g. Fast quadriga l., the driver, wearing long, sleeveless chiton, holds the reins with his l. hand, the kentron in his r. hand; he is crowned by Nike flying r.; in the exergue, on two steps, panoply of arms consisting of shield, cuirass between greaves and a crested helmet; in tiny letters [AΘΛA]. Rev. ΣY - PAKOΣIΩN Head of Arethusa l., crowned with reeds, wearing triple ear-pendant and necklace; around, four dolphins; under the dolphin below the neck, signature EY - AINE. Gallatin R.III / C. VI, no. 6 (this specimen); Gulbenkian I, 105, 312 (same obv. die); SNG ANS 364 (same obv. die). Scarce. Excellent classical style. Beautiful old cabinet tone. Extremely fine Provenance: From an old Swiss Collection started in the 19th century. G.H. Earle jr., Philadelphia Collection. Cl. S. Bement, Philadelphia Collection. Auction S.H. & H. Chapman, Philadelphia 25 June 1912, 112. Auction Naville & Cie., Geneva VI (Lucerne 1923), 516. A Coin Pass (Certificate of Authenticity) from the numisstaxx digitisation service exists for this lot. Estimate: 50000 CHF |  |
Match 4:
| Leu Numismatik AG > Auction 15 | Auction date: 1 June 2024 |
| Lot number: 106 Price realized: This lot is for sale in an upcoming auction - Bid on this lot  | |
| Lot description: IONIA. Erythrai (?). Circa 500-480 BC. Didrachm (Silver, 16 mm, 7.00 g). Nude hero (Erythros?) on horseback to right. Rev. Quadripartite incuse square. BMFA 1835 (same reverse die). Jameson 2269 (same reverse die). Rosen (same reverse die). SNG von Aulock 1943 (same reverse die). SNG Lockett 2814 (this coin). Traité II, 480 and pl. XII, 10. Rare and with an exceptional pedigree. A beautiful piece of wonderful late Archaic style. About extremely fine. From the Hermann Robinow Collection, Morton & Eden 51 ('A Collection of Exceptional Ancient Greek Coins'), 24 October 2011, 144, ex Münzen & Medaillen AG 68, 15 April 1986, 281 and Hess 252, 24-25 May 1982, 66, from the collections of R. C. Lockett, Glendining, Part XII, 21-23 February 1961, 2294, and C. S. Bement, Naville VII, 23-24 June 1924, 1450, ex Hirsch XXX ('Griechische und römische Münzen aus dem Besitze des Rev. Percy Barron (Whyteleafe) und eines bekannten englischen Gelehrten [Sir Arthur Evans]'), 11 May 1911, 568, and from the collections of G. Philipsen, Hirsch XXV, 29 November 1909, 2128 and P. Mathey (1844-1929). The depiction of a naked warrior or hero on this beautiful coin is reminiscent of nearly contemporary didrachms from Sicily, especially from Gela, which also depict a naked warrior with a spear. They point to the significance of cavalry in late Archaic Greek society. Since only wealthy landowners could afford the breeding and keeping of horses, the horse became a status symbol par excellence for the uppermost echelon of society in the Greek poleis. Unlike the didrachms from Syracuse and Gela, our piece likely originates from Erythrai in western Asia Minor, where Achaemenid influences are also conceivable in the appearance of cavalry motifs at the start of the 5th century. It is a splendid late Archaic representation of a nude rider, which explains why the piece found its way into the famous collections of H. Robinow, R. C. Lockett, C. S. Bement, Rev. P. Barron, Sir A. Evans, G. Philipsen, and Paul Mathey. Estimate: 7500 CHF |  |
