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Greenslade Taylor Hunt
Lot 638

[COACHING] Carnegie, Andrew. An American Four-in-Hand in Britain, Scribner, New York, 1885, original decorative green cloth, top edges gilt, frontispiece, half title INSCRIBED BY AUTHOR, octavo; Harper, Charles. Stage-Coach and Mail in Days of Yore, first edition, two volumes, Chapman & Hall, London, 1903, pale red cloth gilt, top edges gilt, plate and text illustrations, octavo; and Belloc, Hilaire. The Highway and its Vehicles, limited edition 992/1250, The Studio, London, 1926, original bevelled green cloth gilt, top edges gilt, plate illustrations, large quarto, (4).

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 291

A London Scottish Other Rank's sporran, first half 20th Century

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 299

Three Highland Regiment other ranks' sporran cantles, first half 20th Century

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 342

A North African jambiya, having white-metal-mounted horn hilt and conforming scabbard, first half 20th Century, 31 cm long in scabbard

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 344

A Scottish highland regiment sgian dubh, the pommel set with a faux citrine and the hilt bearing a brass Saint Andrew and saltire device, first half 20th century

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 37

A Victorian Border Regiment first pattern other rank's Home Service pattern helmet plate

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 377

The Beatles Please Please Me LP, first pressing Parlophone PMC 1202 record, with black gold labels and credit to Dick James Music

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 4

A 1939 Iron Cross Second Class together with a case for an Iron Cross First Class or similar

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 402

A 1960s taxidermy mink mask mounted on an oak shield, 17 cm This was the first mink killed by the Kendal and District Otter Hounds on the River Lune, 15th April 1968. This followed mink escaping from mink farms and becoming established in the wild.

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 42

A Victorian Border Regiment officer's first pattern Home Service pattern helmet plate

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 455

Farmer Giles of Ham, J. R. R. Tolkien, published by George Allen and Unwin Ltd, 1949, first edition, fifth impression, illustrated, cloth pictorial boards and illustrated dust jacket, 8vo

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 462

Francis Bedford (1816-1894), A Chart of Anglican Church Architecture, arranged Chronologically with Examples of the Different Styles, dissected and laid on cotton within printed boards, fifth edition, first published 1844 , 56 cm x 38 cm open

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 469

[Autograph] Neil Alden Armstrong (1930-2012) Ephemera pertaining to the Conferment of the Freedom of the Burgh of Langholm upon 'First Man on the Moon' Neil Armstrong, 11th March 1972 at the Old Parish Church, Langholm, gathered by an official invited guest to the closed event, with printed Order of Proceedings signed verso in felt tipped pen by Neil Armstrong and in blue ink by his first wife Janet (m. 1956-1994), official invitation to the ceremony, luncheon menu, two photographs of the ceremony including one of Armstrong taking the oath, and period newspaper clippings

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 474

Ephemera pertaining to the White Star Line R.M.S 'Majestic', comprising First Second and Third Class menus for June 28th, 1923

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 580

A Royal Mint United Kingdom Queen Elizabeth II 1980 First Half Sovereigns Pair, cased with paperwork

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Laidlaw Auctioneers & Valuers
Lot 869

An antique map of Westmorland by Robert Mordan, from The New Description and State of England containing the Mapps of the Countries of England and Wales', first printed 1701, hand tinted, under wash-lined mount and glass in a Hogarth frame, 21 x 17 cm

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McTear's
Lot 3

SPEY SINGLE CASK AGED 25 YEARS Single Cask Single Malt Scotch Whisky. Bottle no. 5 of only 200 bottles. Distilled from Speyside Distillery's first distillate in December 1990, matured in Cask No. 27 and bottled in March 2016 by Speyside Distillery. 50cl, 55.1% volume, in wooden gift box with certificate of authenticity.

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Corne Akkermans Auctions
Lot 14

Albania, P 62s, Linzmayer B312as2, Banka E Shqipiperise, 100 Leke, 1996 (1997), SPECIMEN. Portrait of Fan S. Noli at left on front. First Albanian Parliament Building (now the Acadamy of Sciences) at right on back. Diagonal red overprint SPECIMEN on front. Various perforations., # LQ 340278, PCGS 66 PPQ, Gem UNC.

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Corne Akkermans Auctions
Lot 5

Afghanistan, P 24a, Linzmayer B304, Bank of Afghanistan, 20 Afghanis, SH1318 (1939). Portrait of King Muhammad Zahir (first portrait) at left, coat of arms of Afghanistan at upper center on front. Signature 1. River valley on back. Cross cancelled on front., # 596982, aUNC

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Corne Akkermans Auctions
Lot 595

New Zealand, P 171c, Linzmayer B118c, Reserve Bank of New Zealand, 5 Dollars, (1989-1992). SPECIAL FIRST AND LAST NUMBERS JHN 000001 an JHM 1000000. Queen Elizabeth II at right on front. Tui and plants at center on back. (2), , aUNC.

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Corne Akkermans Auctions
Lot 6

Afghanistan, P 25a, Linzmayer B305a, Bank of Afghanistan, 50 Afghanis, SH1318 (1939). Coat of arms of Afghanistan at upper center, portrait of King Muhammad Zahir (first portrait) at right on front. Signature 1. Minar-I-Istiqlal (Independence Monument) in Kabul at center on back., # 107372, UNC

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Corne Akkermans Auctions
Lot 7

Afghanistan, P 26a, Linzamayer B306a, Bank of Afghanistan, 100 Afghanis, SH1318 (1939). Coat of arms of Afghanistan at upper center, portrait of King Muhammad Zahir (first portrait) at right on front. Signature 1. Mausoleum of Ahmad Shah Durrani in Kandahar at center on back., # 071970, UNC

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Amersham Auction Rooms
Lot 6

A First Period Belleek porcelain simulated woven and latticed cane basket of clover leaf form, encrusted with rose buds, flowers and foliage bears impressed marks 7''w

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Amersham Auction Rooms
Lot 7

An early/mid 19thC tinted pink lustre glazed pearlware 'Political' jug of bulbous form, decorated in monochrome with a portrait of Earl Grey The First Lord of the Treasury and inscribed 'Reform' on the reverse, amid trailing thistles, clover and roses bears a printed C&R monogram on the base 5''h

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1016

Revolt of the Heraclii AV Solidus. Alexandria or Cyprus, Dated fixed IY 11 (summer AD 608). DN ЄRACLIO CONSVLI BA, facing busts of Heraclius and the Exarch Heraclius, each wearing slight beard and consular robes; cross between / VICTORIA CONSAB IA, cross potent set upon four steps; CONOB in exergue. DOC 11; MIBE 3; Sear 719; Berk 112. 4.46g, 20mm, 7h. Good Extremely Fine. Insignificant scratch on rev., tiny edge bump. Very Rare. Having been appointed Exarch of Africa by the Emperor Maurice Tiberius, Heraclius the Elder was venerated at Carthage where he had established ties with the local elite and enjoyed a safe and strong position. His son and namesake Heraclius the Younger married into the local African elite, his first wife Eudocia being the daughter of a local landowner. Although not as wealthy an area of the Empire as Egypt, Africa was able to stand alone in self sufficiency whilst also being a provider of grain and revenues to Constantinople, a position that further strengthened the Heraclii's position for the events of AD 608. Maurice was murdered by disaffected soldiers after they had rebelled against him and proclaimed their fellow soldier Phocas to be Emperor in 602, the culmination of a long struggle with the finances of the Empire, for which he had imposed high taxes and intended to introduce reforms to reduce expenditure on the maintenance of the army. The change of regime at first being welcomed due to the lowering of taxes, Phocas' methods of ensuring loyalty and keeping control of the government by killing thousands of dissenters (a claim we ought to take with caution as no contemporary histories remain), coupled with the disintegrating stability of the Eastern provinces where the Sasanian Persian king Khosrau II was preparing an invasion, led to increasing hostility towards him. In opposition to the tyranny of Phocas, Heraclius the elder and the younger were proclaimed Consuls, perhaps by the Senate at Carthage (a body which had no power to do so), and began issuing coinage depicting themselves in consular robes only, as we see on this very rare solidus, as they did not hold the imperial title at that time. Gaining support from Egypt, Syria, Cyprus and Sicily, Heraclius the Younger sailed to Constantinople, arriving in October 610, and the revolt culminated in a coup where he was crowned and saw to the execution of his predecessor, establishing a dynasty which would last a century, ending with the execution of Justinian II in 711.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1093

Great Britain. Henry VI (First reign, 1422-1426) AV Half-noble. Annulet issue. London, c.1422-1430. King, crowned, standing facing in ship holding sword and shield / Floriate cross extending from a central panel containing a letter h. Schneider 291; North 1417; S 1805; Friedberg 113. 3.47g, 26mm, 1h. Near Extremely Fine. From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1094

Great Britain. Henry VI (First reign, 1422-1461) AR Groat. Calais, mm: rosettes and mascules c.1430-1431. Bust facing / Long cross. North 1446; S 1859. 3.77g, 26mm, 6h. Good Very Fine. From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1098

Anglo-Gallic. Edward the Black Prince, prince of Aquitaine (1362-1372) AV Leopard d'or. Aquitaine, c.1357-1360. + ЄD : PmO : GnS : [AnGLI]Є : P'nCPS : AQVITNIЄ, crowned leopard passant left, raising right forepaw, within tressure of 10 arches, quatrefoils on points and within spandrels; double quatrefoil stops / + XPC : VInCЄT : XPC RЄGnAT : XPC : IMPЄRAT, floriate cross within quatrefoil, leopards passant in angles. Withers & Ford 150; Schneider –; Elias 140; S 8121; Friedberg p. 212, 4. 3.47g, 29mm, 10h. Extremely Fine. Sharply struck and in exceptional condition for the type. Rare. From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection. An exceptional military commander, Edward 'the Black Prince' was the eldest son of King Edward III, on whose behalf he campaigned in France from the age of 15. Scoring decisive military victories over the French at Crécy in 1346 and Poitiers in 1356, the Black Prince twice crippled the French army for a decade each time. Struck at the height of the Black Prince's popularity, the leopard d'or is an example of his use of iconography to bolster the English position in Aquitaine, as it appears to deliberately supersede the French mouton d'or – the Paschal Lamb on the obverse and the fleur de lys on the reverse are all replaced by English leopards. This coin was one of the last issues of leopards struck in the period 1357-1361, and the entire series was probably recalled in 1361, when Edward III renounced his title of King of France in exchange for ratification of his possession of Aquitaine in the Treaty of Brétigny. The captured French King John II had to pay three million gold crowns for his ransom, and would be released after he paid one million; he was also required to provide numerous hostages, including two of his sons. While the hostages were held, John returned to France to try and raise funds to pay the ransom. In 1362 John's son Louis of Anjou escaped captivity. John thus felt honour-bound to return to captivity in England, where he died in 1364. In 1362, the Black Prince was invested as Prince of Aquitaine. He and his wife Joan of Kent moved to Bordeaux, the capital of the principality, where they spent the next nine years, and had two sons. The elder son, named Edward after his father and grandfather, died at the age of six. Around the time of the birth of their younger son, Richard (who would become King Richard II), the Black Prince was lured into a war on behalf of King Peter of Castile. The ensuing Battle of Náera in 1367 was one of the Black Prince’s greatest victories. While the English longbow again demonstrated its devastating power, driving off the opposing cavalry, unlike in other battles of the Hundred Years' War however, at Nájera it was the English who assaulted the French lines, with the English vanguard pinning the French formation while their mounted knights flanked and routed the enemy lines. Yet it was this campaign that shattered the Prince's health, and he died some nine years later after a long-lasting illness contracted in Spain, becoming the first Prince of Wales not to become king, and thus robbing England of a capable and greatly respected heir.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1111

Italy. The Roman Republic (1798-1799), Siege of Ancona AV ‘Scudo Romano’. Ancona, 1799. PIVS SEXTVS PONT M A VI, oval coat of arms of the Braschi in a rich cornice decorated with cornucopiae and shell, surmounted by a radiant papal tiara and crossed keys / AVXILIVM DE SANCTO 1780, veiled personification of Holy Church, with radiant head, seated to front on clouds, holding keys of St Peter in right hand and extending left to a small domed temple; in left inner field, mint mark A; below, small coat of arms of Mons. Giuseppe Vai. Plain edge. M. Dubbini & G. Mancinelli, Storia delle monete di Ancona, Ancona 2009, 7.4 and p. 206, first paragraph (this coin); M. Traina, Gli assedi e le loro monete (491-1861), Bologna 1976, ‘Ancona, asseddio austro-russo-turco del 1799’, pp. 55-75, 3. For related obsidional silver issues of Ancona cf. Muntoni IV, p. 212, 20 pl. 218; Serafini III, 855; Pagani p. 262 note; Berman 3001 (Pius VI); Gigante 2005, p. 373, 1; KM 10. 37.20g, 41mm, 6h. Fleur De Coin. Unique and of great numismatic interest. The allied siege and naval blockade of Ancona from 18 March - 13 November 1799 was effected by a squadron of 8 Russian and Turkish ships, and on land, by an army of troops from Austria, Russia and Turkey. This was the occasion for the remarkable obsidional issue by Ancona of silver coins utilising dies previously used for silver scudi and half scudi from the Rome mint in the name of Pius VI, as well as local copper 2 and 1 Baiocchi pieces. According to the Abbot Antonio Leoni, in Ancona Ilustrata opera dell’Abbate Antonio Leoni anconitano colle risposte ai sigg. Peruzzi, Pignetti etc, e il compendio delle memorie storiche d’Ancona, Ancona 1832 (Archivio comunale di Ancona fasc. 2920, p. 100), the new mint was housed in a confiscated collegiate church and entrusted on 3 Fiorile (11 April) to the chief mint master of the new Roman Republic, Luigi Severi. The emergency mint was operational by the end of Germile (about 19 April), and with the seizure of church property and forced contributions from wealthy private citizens, including the Jewish community, it began to strike coins in bronze, silver and gold. Leoni op. cit., p. 376, expressly states that gold was struck: (‘Zecca: ove fu battuta la moneta d rame, e di bronzo, da’ argento, e d’ oro: esendo zecchiere il signor Luigi romano. Le monete d’oro, e d’ argento (piasre e doppie) furono coniate simile alle pontifice, e di eguale purezza.’). The bronze coinage was struck from the bell metal recovered from the local churches, the ‘voluntary’ silver was debased and struck from modified Pius VI dies with a small mint mark ‘A’ added to the field of the reverse die. However, none of the gold coinage has survived except for the above specimen which according to Dubbini and Mancinelli, p. 206: ‘probabilmente si tratta di un omaggio fatto durante l’assedio a qualche personaggio di rilievo’ (‘it is probably a donative made during the siege for a very important person’). The ancient Doric city of Ancona was founded by Syracusan exiles (Strabo v.4.3.2 [241]) in the early fourth century BC on an elbow-shaped promontory (Ἀγκών), which gave the town its name, situated on an excellent natural harbour. Under the Roman Empire the city became a municipium and base for the fleet; Trajan improved the port, where he built nearby a splendid triumphal arch celebrating the Dacian victory. Under Byzantium, Ancona became the first city of the Maritime Pentapolis, governed by Ravenna, but with considerable autonomy. The seat of a Carolingian march, it eventually became a semi-independent maritime republic under papal patronage, rich in commerce with Constantinople. After the fall of Constantinople in 1453, Ancona’s fortunes waned. The Medici pope Clement VII seized the city in 1532, bringing it under direct papal rule. In February 1797 Ancona was occupied by the French and on 19 November became the revolutionary Anconine Republic (Repubblica Anconitana) and part of Napoleon’s newly proclaimed First Roman Republic (Repubblica Romana). Ancona soon became target for the anti-French alliance and became the subject of a well documented siege. The long and obstinate defence of the besieged obtained for the defenders, as it always should do, the most honourable of terms; and General Monnier and his troops were highly complimented for their bravery by the Austrian General Frœlich. Ancona became once again a papal state (1799-1808), part of the Italian Kingdom of Napoleon (1808-1814), yet again a papal state (1814-1848), a part of the second revolutionary Roman Republic (1848-1849), and finally again a papal state (1849-1860), before its entry in the Kingdom of Italy in 29 September 1860.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 1134

Poland. Adalbert of Gniezno (1177-1200) AR Denar. +ADALBERTVS (retrograde), head of St Adalbertus of Gniezno facing / Same type. Unpublished in the standard references, for type cf. Kopicki 247 (one sided brakteat); Frynas -; cf. Lanz sale 152, 2011, 841. 0.23g, 16mm. Very Fine. Extremely Rare - the second known example. St Adalbert was born 939 of a noble Bohemian family and died 997. He assumed the name of the Archbishop Adalbert (his name had been Wojtech), under which he studied at Magdeberg. He became bishop of Prague from were he was obliged to flee on account of the enmity he had aroused by his efforts to reform the clergy of his diocese. He went to Rome and was released by Pope John XV from his episcopal obligations, withdrew to a monastery and occupied himself in the most humble duties. Recalled by his people, who received him with great enunciation he was nevertheless expelled a second time and returned to Rome. The people of Hungary were just then turning towards Christianilty and Adalbert went among them as a missionary, and almost certainly baptized King Geysa and his family, as well as King Stephen. He afterwards evangelized the Poles, and was made Archbishop of Gniezno (Gnesen) in central western Poland. But he again relinquished his see, and set out to preach to the pagans in what was to become the Kingdom of Prussia. He was at first successful, but his imperious manner in commanding them to abandon paganism irritated some local shamans and he was martyred 997. His feast is celebrated 23 April, and he is called the Apostle of Prussia. Boleslas I, Prince of Poland is said to have ransomed his body for an equivalent weight of gold. He is thought to be the author of the war-song, “Boga-Rodzica”, which the Poles used to sing when going to battle. St. Adalbert was later declared the patron saint of Bohemia, Poland, Hungary and Prussia.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 114

Sicily, Syracuse AV Dilitron. Emergency issue of the Second Democracy, winter 406/5 BC. Obverse die signed by 'IM...'. Head of Athena left, wearing crested Attic helmet decorated with serpent, palmette and elaborate spiral tendrils, [ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ before, IM below truncation of neck] / Aegis with gorgoneion at centre. Boehringer, Essays Thompson, pl. 38, 12 = Hess Leu Sale (27 March 1956), lot 210 (same obverse die); Manhattan Sale I, 28 (same dies). 1.76g, 10mm, 7h. Near Mint State. Extremely Rare; one of very few known specimens - only one other on CoinArchives. The year 406 marked a desperate time for the Greeks in Sicily. A great Carthaginian invasion of Sicily had commenced in the Spring to punish the Greeks for having raided the Punic territories of Motya and Panormos. 60,000 soldiers under Hannibal Mago in 1,000 transports along with 120 triremes sailed for Sicily, where despite a plague that ravaged the ranks of the Carthaginian army and felled its commander, they successfully besieged and sacked Akragas, the wealthiest of all the cities of Sicily. After razing the city to the ground, the Carthaginians under their new commander Himilco marched east to Gela. Despite a spirited defence of the city by the defenders and the arrival of a relief force of 34,000 men and 50 triremes under Dionysios of Syracuse, the city fell after a poorly coordinated and unsuccessful attack launched by the Greeks. As Dionysios retreated from Gela first to Kamarina and then back to Syracuse, both of these now indefensible cities were sacked and levelled by Himilco's forces. It was against this backdrop of a desperate fight for survival that many emergency coinages were issued in Sicily. Gold was scarce in the Greek world and tended to be used only for emergency coinages, as in that famous instance when Athens in the last decade of the fifth century resorted to melting the gold from the statues of Nike on the Akropolis when cut off from their silver mines at Laurion. Gela, Akragas, Kamarina and Syracuse all issued emergency gold coinage in 406/5 BC, without doubt to pay the mercenaries they had hired in their doomed resistance to Himilco. The master engraver 'IM...' responsible for this coin is also known to have engraved Syracusan tetradrachms around this period (see Tudeer 67).

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 116

Sicily, Syracuse AR Tetradrachm. Time of Dionysios I, circa 405-400 BC. Charioteer, holding reins and kentron, driving galloping quadriga to left, detached chariot wheel beneath the back hooves of the horses; above, Nike flying to right, holding wreath, grain ear below double exergual lines / Head of Arethusa to left, wearing sakkos, double earring, and necklace; ΣΥΡΑΚΟΣΙΩΝ and four swimming dolphins around. Tudeer 69 (O25/R47); Gulbenkian 288 (same dies); AMB 471 (same dies); Rizzo, pl. 47, 17 (same dies); Boston MFA 415 (same dies). 17.32g, 25mm, 2h. Extremely Fine. Very Rare. From the Angelo S. Collection; Ex Dr. Patrick Tan Collection, Gemini VII, 9 January 2011, lot 164; Ex A. Tkalec, 24 October 2003, lot 39. Sicily in the mid-5th Century BC was riven by continual warfare between cities vying for pre-eminence and power over their neighbours, and such warfare required vast amounts of money to finance, money which the cities of Sicily had in abundance thanks to their favourable position on the Mediterranean trade routes. This constant state of war stood in contrast to a climate of state-patronized cultural experimentation and development. Great artists, sculptors and die cutters were hired to imbue their employers' cities with elegance and grandeur; the need for ready coin to pay mercenaries naturally leant itself to the die cutter's advantage. The tetradrachms provided the ideal medium on which to explore, refine and hone their art, and while the first masters such as the 'Maestro della foglia', and the unknown master who signed his work 'A' (see lot 106) remained anonymous on their coinage, their students proudly signed their works with their signatures, and thus are passed on to us the names of Exakestidas, Kimon, Euainetos and others. Yet while the signed dies are often among the most coveted by collectors, many of the finest dies were left unsigned – as was the case with the present piece, which though lacking a signature is nonetheless an excellent example of the very best numismatic art of the period.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 15

Lucania, Metapontion AR Stater. Circa 400-340 BC. Head of Demeter right, wearing pendant earring and necklace / Ear of barley with leaf to right, upon which ΞΩ; META to left. Antikenmuseum Basel 145 (this coin); Noe-Johnston 507; HN Italy 1538. 7.89g, 22mm, 10h. Extremely Fine; die break on rev. Beautiful old cabinet tone. Ex Numismatica Ars Classica 64, 17 May 2012, lot 632; Ex Antikenmuseum Basel & Sammlung Ludwig, Numismatica Ars Classica 13, 8 October 1998, lot 145; Exhibited at the Antikenmuseum Basel und Sammlung Ludwig in Basel in 1988. Metapontion was among the first cities of Magna Graecia to issue coinage, and indeed long preceded its later rival Tarentum in this respect. The choice of the barley ear as the civic emblem is unusual in that the other cities of Magna Graecia all struck coinage displaying types relating to their foundation myths or principal cults. Metapontion's choice may well reflect a significant economic reliance on its major export, a hypothesis supported by the preponderance of Demeter portraits on its later coinage, a convention seemingly broken only in exceptional circumstances, such as the occasional Hygeia issue that was probably elicited by concern over pestilence, flooding or drought. The city's reliance on its agricultural exports made it particularly vulnerable to the increasing barbarian attacks in the fourth century that eventually caused Tarentum to request the assistance of the Epeirote king Alexander in driving the aggressive Lucani and other tribes back into the interior. It was this period of strife that caused the only significant variation in the coinage of Metapontion - the new demands placed on the city by the war against the Lucani and its support for Alexander of Epeiros' campaign are undoubtedly the cause of the sudden rise in output of the mint, as well as the hasty overstriking of Pegasi. It was at this time that militaristic types were introduced, engraved in double relief, depicting the helmeted portraits of the city's founder Leukippos, along with the deities Zeus, Athena 'Tharragoras', Apollo and Herakles - a fitting series of coinage for a Hellenic city threated by barbaric aggressors. Indeed it is not coincidental that the contemporary issues at Tarentum similarly allude to war, depicting Taras armed, the horseman armed, and sometimes accompanied by Nike. It is also probable that the appearance of the same signatures, notably KAL and API, represent a coordination of defence efforts at a federal level, rather than an artist's signature as is often suggested. It has been often suggested that the head of Demeter on this coin draws heavily for inspiration on the Arethusa portraits by Euainetos on the dekadrachms of Syracuse. Indeed, with the only exception being that Euainetos’ Arethusa wears a wreath of reeds, the images are so similar that this influence seems certain – the hair, in particular, is virtually identical in style. Returning Italian Greek mercenaries would have brought these coins home with them, and evidently they had a strong influence on the local die engravers.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 171

Attica, Athens AR New Style Tetradrachm. Athens or mint moving with Sulla, circa 86-84 BC. Head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet, bowl decorated with griffin / Owl standing facing on amphora on which A, monogram to either side; all within wreath. Dewing 1653; Kraay-Hirmer pl. 120, 366; Thompson, New Style 1304a (same obverse die). 16.55g, 28mm, 12h. Extremely Fine. Magnificent old cabinet tone. Very Rare. From the Angelo S. Collection; Ex Numismatica Ars Classica 64, 17 May 2012, lot 812; Ex Prof. Dr. Hagen Tronnier Collection, Künker 94, 27 September 2004, lot 865; Ex Schulten & Co, October 1978, lot 21. In the First Mithradatic War the Roman forces under Sulla first directed their attention to the city of Athens, which was then ruled by the tyrant Aristion, a puppet of Mithradates. Upon his arrival, Sulla threw up earthworks encompassing not only the city but also the port of Piraeos. Despite several attempts by Archelaos, the Mithradatic commander in Asia, to raise the siege, Athens remained firmly blockaded. During the year or so of siege, Sulla stripped shrines and Sibyls alike of wealth to fund his war effort. From these and other sources of precious metal Sulla appears to have chosen to strike a currency that would be familiar and acceptable to the surrounding regions. The monogram series seem to have been the first issue, for which Thompson suggested a starting date of 86 BC, after Sulla captured Athens. Another series displaying a trophy are regarded as the second issue, and presumably were struck shortly before Sulla left Athens to return to Rome. It has been suggested however that Sulla would have also struck coins of Athenian type during the period of the siege itself, a sensible notion that would seem to make the trophy series fitting for a post-siege issue.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 178

Macedon, Chalkidian League AR Tetradrachm. Olynthos, circa 364-348 BC. Laureate head of Apollo right / XAΛKIΔEΩN around kithara with six strings. Robinson & Clement 96 (A63/P83). SNG ANS 502 = SNG Berry 24 (same dies). 14.21g, 25mm, 11h. Extremely Fine. A portrait of fine style, centrally struck in high relief on a large sized flan. From the Angelo S. Collection; Ex Roma Numismatics II, 2 October 2011, lot 218; Ex Gorny & Mosch 155, March 2007, lot 61; Ex Triton VIII, 11 January 2005, lot 117. The growing influence and expansionist aims of the Chalkidian League led by Olynthos had in 382 BC led to calls from Amyntas of Macedon, as well as Akanthos and Apollonia (who anticipated imminent conquest by the League), for Spartan intervention to check the League’s power. Sparta, keen to reassert its presence in northern Greece, consented and a force of 10,000 was mobilised and dispatched against the League. After several years of protracted but indecisive warfare, Olynthos agreed to dissolve the Chalkidian League, though this dissolution appears to have been little more than a token formality, since in the following year the League appears among the members of the Athenian naval confederacy, and twenty years later Demosthenes reported the power of the League as being much greater than before the Spartan expedition. Olynthos itself is at this time spoken of as a city of the first rank, and the Chalkidian League then comprised thirty-two cities. Olynthus was allied with Macedon when Philip II and Athens went to war in 356 after Philip’s capture of the Athenian colonies of Pydna and Potidea. Around this time Philip also allowed himself to be drawn into the Sacred War on behalf of the Thessalians; since Athens was also a combatant in the Sacred War, the war between Athens and Macedon became inextricably linked with the progress of the Sacred War. Alarmed by Philip’s aggressive policies and further invasions of neighbouring territories, Olynthos concluded an alliance with Athens in 352. The city made three embassies to Athens, the occasions of Demosthenes’s three Olynthiac Orations. On the third, the Athenians sent soldiers from among its citizens to garrison the city and reinforce its defences. In response Philip attacked the Chalkidian League in 349, and by 348, he had completely destroyed the League, razing Olynthos to the ground in the process.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 244

Kingdom of Macedon, Ptolemy Keraunos AR Tetradrachm. In the name and types of Lysimachos of Thrace. Lysimacheia, 281-280 BC. Diademed head of the deified Alexander right, with horn of Ammon / Athena Nikephoros seated left, left arm resting on shield, transverse spear in background; BAΣIΛEΩΣ to right, ΛYΣIMAXOY being crowned by Nike to left, to inner left, head of lion left above elephant standing left; ΘE monogram on throne. W. Hollstein. “Münzen des Ptolemaios Keraunos” in SNR 74 (1995), p.14, fig. 1 [= Pozzi collection 1169] (same dies); Boutin, Collection Pozzi, 2627; cf. Hollstein p. 14, fig. 2 [= ex Leu sale 42, 1987, 163] (same obverse die). 16.93g, 32mm, 12h. Good Very Fine. Extremely Rare - the third known example. Now known from three silver tetradrachms and two gold staters, this extremely rare and short-lived issue has been convincingly argued by W. Hollstein to have been struck under Ptolemy Keraunos, the eldest son of Ptolemy I of Egypt and the assassin of Seleukos I. Forced to leave Egypt after his younger half-brother was first named heir apparent and then ascended the throne in 282 as Ptolemy II, Keraunos travelled to the court of Lysimachos where his half-sister Arsinoe was queen and his sister Lysandra resided, married to Lysimachos’ son Agathokles. After Agathokles was executed for treason - an accusation encouraged by Arsinoe in order to position her own sons by Lysimachos to inherit the kingdom - Keraunos and Lysandra travelled east to court aid from Seleukos, prompting the expedition that began shortly afterwards and ended with the death of Lysimachos at the Battle of Korupedion in 281. Keraunos moved quickly to secure his own position and assassinated Seleukos. Though known as a personal symbol of Seleukos, the elephant on this issue is thought to refer to the war elephants supplied by Keraunos to his ally Pyrrhos of Epeiros for his Italian expedition, while the use of the types of Lysimachos is a clear indication that his intent was to portray himself as the successor of his former protector. That this type was struck for such a brief period is due to the death of Keraunos in battle against the invading Celts, as the collapse of Lysimachos’ kingdom opened the way for their southern migration.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 257

Macedon under Roman rule, First Meris AR Tetradrachm. Amphipolis, circa 167-149 BC. Diademed and draped bust of Artemis right, bow and quiver at shoulder; all within tondo of Macedonian shield / ΜΑΚΕΔΟΝΩΝ ΠΡΩΤΗΣ, horizontal club, monograms above and below, all within oak wreath tied at left; thunderbolt in outer left field. SNG Copenhagen 1313 (this obverse die). 17.13g, 32mm, 8h. Good Extremely Fine. A splendid example of the type; beautifully centred and struck.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 297

Ionia, uncertain mint EL 1/12 Stater. Circa 5th Century BC. Siren standing right, holding tympanon (tambourine) / Bukranion with fillets hanging from each horn. Rosen 369. 1.00g, 7mm, 10h. Good Very Fine. Extremely Rare, only the sixth recorded specimen. From the Doliones Collection. This type, which is known from just six examples including the current piece, was encountered for the first time in only 1957 when a specimen appeared for sale at the Hess-Leu auction in Lucerne on April 16 of that year. That piece, lot 271, now resides in Oxford. Two further examples were sold by Münzen & Medaillen, one on 6 October 1987 (lot 131), which was the Rosen specimen, and another on 22 March 2002 (lot 72). Jeffrey Spier wrote (Numismatic Chronicle 1988, p.221) that the first of these examples was 'gold rather than electrum', though it is clearly not. The fourth specimen was sold at The New York Sale 25 on 5 January 2011 (lot 97), whilst the fifth was sold in Roma Numismatics Auction III, 31 March 2012 (lot 197). The mythical Sirens are best known to us from two ancient epics: the 'Argonautica' by Apollonios, in which Jason and the Argonauts have to travel past them on their quest for the Golden Fleece, and Homer's 'Odyssey', where they are portrayed as a pair of dangerous creatures that lure passing sailors to their deaths with their sweet music (Odyssey XII, 40). They are supposed to have inhabited an island with a particularly rocky shoreline onto which sailors would be drawn by their desire to hear the Sirens sing, leading to shipwreck. Speaking to Odysseus and warning him of the dangers he would encounter further into his journey, Queen Circe describes the Sirens as sitting in a meadow, with around them "a great heap of bones of mouldering men" (XII, 45). Although later depicted as women with wings, feathery tails and scaly bird-like feet, and eventually as mermaids, whose bodies were as seductive as their voices, depictions of the Sirens in early Greek art were as they appear on this coin, combining the body of a bird with the head of a woman, as can be seen on the 'Siren Vase', now in the British Museum, decorated in c. 480-470 BC and roughly contemporaneous with this coin.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 34

Lucania, Velia AR Hemidrachm. Circa 305-290 BC. Head of Athena right, wearing Corinthian helmet bound with olive-wreath / Lion crouching left, holding sword in jaws and right paw; below, I; [ΥΕ]ΛHΤ IΩ[Ν] in exergue. Haeberlin, ZfN 1908, p. 231 (Volsinii); Giesecke, Italia Numismatica p. 21-22 (Volsinii); HN Italy 2677 (uncertain issue). 2.76g, 15mm, 8h. Toned, Good Very Fine. Unique. From the Dr. Murray Gell-Mann Collection; Ex Walther Giesecke Collection. When this long lost unique coin from the Walther Giesecke collection was first published by Ernst Haeberlin in 1908, it was attributed on the suggestion of Heinrich Dressel (then Director of the Königliche Museen zu Berlin) as part of the gold Volsinii series (Vecchi, Etruscan Coins, pp. 367-8), based on a misreading of the legend below the exergual line and misinterpretation of the I below the lion as an Etruscan value mark. This erroneous conclusion was followed by Giesecke in his masterful publication, Italia Numismatica, Leipzig 1928, and this incorrect identification was perpetuated by Italo Vecchi in a preliminary study on Etruscan coins, SNR 26, 1988 p. 61, with the caveat ‘as the coin is not available the recorded weight could not checked.’ In 2001 Historia Nummorum Italy (no. 2677), without the benefit of actually seeing the coin, correctly rejected the Volsinian identification, placing it under ‘Uncertain Issues’ (pp. 198-9) and tentatively suggested that the issue may belong to Velia based on the similarity of the reverse type to the Philistion group of didrachms (Williams 406-8; HN Italy 1303-4). The welcomed reappearance of the coin in this interesting American collection after nearly 100 years confirms the suspected attribution of HN Italy, with a slightly blundered, but clear legend: … ΛNΤ IΩ ... (sic).

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 348

Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 478-455 BC. Bearded head of Silenos facing slightly right / Incuse head of roaring lion left. Bodenstedt Em. 36; HGC 6, 962; Gulbenkian 704; SNG von Aulock 7725; Leu 86, 399. 2.54g, 11mm, 12h. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, Bodenstedt records only five specimens, and only two examples are present on CoinArchives. The much inferior Leu specimen sold for CHF 5,200 in 2003. More recently, similar Bodenstedt 34 types struck from the same obverse die have sold for $10,000 in 2009 (Triton XII, 283; very poor die state), and $16,000 in 2013 (CNG 94, 489). The present example can easily be said to be the finest example of this obverse die strike present on CoinArchives. Silenos, the rustic god of winemaking and drunkenness, is conspicuous for being commonly featured on the coinage of Mytilene in a variety of forms and types. That this is the case should immediately suggest to us that wine making was an important aspect of Mytilene's economic activities, and when consulting the ancient sources we find that this was indeed the case. The island of Lesbos has a long history of wine making dating back to at least the 7th century BC when it was mentioned in the works of Homer. Warmly spoken of in the 4th century BC, Lesbian wines achieve fulsome praise from Archestratos, the 'Daedalos of tasty dishes', who rated it above Thasian and Phoenician, without even a mention (in the surviving fragments) of Chian, the other first-class wine of the period. Euboulos implies that tax breaks for Lesbian wines at Athens increased its popularity and availability, and refers to it as “old, dripping with nectar”. During this time the island competed with the wines of Chios for the lucrative Greek markets, and the popularity of Lesbian wine is well attested as continuing into Roman times where it was highly valued along with other Aegean wines of Chios, Thasos and Kos. "I can name and praise the wines produced in other cities and their names I do not forget. But none of them is compared to the wine of Lesbos." (Athenaeus, Deipnosophistae, A, 52d)

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Wright Marshall Ltd
Lot 116

A Royal Albert " Masquerade " 35 piece tea service including tea and coffee pot. CONDITION REPORT: All first quality, just minor rubbing on handles and finials.

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Wright Marshall Ltd
Lot 249

A First world war defence medal and second medal both with ribbons.(2)

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Wright Marshall Ltd
Lot 293

A Box of sundry items, First World war medals, Masonic sash, white metal letter opener, collection of studs to a box, etc.

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Wright Marshall Ltd
Lot 51

A group of 19th Century French gilt metal candlesticks, both converted to electricity, the first a two branch candelabrum, the canted plinth base rising to a spreading circular base, adorned with laurel branches intertwining around a central column adorned with ribbon swag and terminating at urn candle holder 23cms high, together with another alabaster and gilt metal candlestick with ram head terminals, 19.5cms.

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Busby
Lot 17

A large selection of modern British and world coins, including crowns, and a First Decimal Set

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Busby
Lot 127

A mixed lot of first day covers, early 20th century correspondence and post cards, including 25th Anniversary of Liberation 9th May 1945

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Special Auction Services
Lot 521

SIRIO Elettra Camera: first version dating from 1945 with makers case (a lot)

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 366

Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-427 BC. Head of Athena wearing crested Corinthian helmet to right / Two confronted female heads, their faces overlapping; all within incuse square. Bodenstedt 55; HGC 6, 981; Boston MFA 1693; de Luynes 2555. 2.53g, 11mm, 1h. Extremely Fine. Very Rare (Bodenstedt lists only 8 examples), and among the finest known. This coin seems like a perfectly ordinary hekte when the obverse is first viewed; it is only when the coin is flipped to reveal its highly unusual reverse does the importance and novelty of the type become apparent. Employing a simple but effective form of optical illusion, the reverse appears to show the same female portrait both to the left and to the right. The design is deliberately intended to confound the eye and engage the viewer's attention in attempting to resolve both portraits independently of the other, which is of course impossible, thus presenting the viewer with a visual paradox. The image works by confusing the brain's figure-ground perceptual grouping process by giving it contradictory cues, thus preventing it from assigning definitive edges to the observed shapes. As a result, the human visual system will settle on one of the portraits, facing either left or right, and alternate between them. The importance of this type, both in terms of numismatic art and in the wider context of Greek art in general, cannot be understated. It is a thoroughly novel, and never to be repeated experiment in paradoxical illusion on the coinage of a Greek city-state. The Greeks were certainly familiar with the concept of a visual paradox - Plato describes the ourobouros 'tail-devouring snake' as the first living thing; a self-eating, circular being: the universe as an immortal, mythologically constructed entity. They were also aware of the power of illusions - Greek architects would apply a technique known as entasis in the construction of their temple columns. Columns formed with straight sides would appear to the observer to have an attenuated appearance, and their outlines would seem concave rather than straight. Therefore a slight convex curve would be built into the shaft of the column, resulting in a swelling in the middle parts, in order to correct this disagreeable trick of the eye. Why then, when they were clearly aware of the power of illusion and paradox, did Greek artists not employ such techniques? The answer most likely lies in the cultural shift away from the static representational art of the archaic period driven by new realistic and idealistic paradigms; artists now sought to demonstrate their skill through attempting to attain aesthetic perfection based on both observational study, and occasionally improvement of nature through idealisation of the subject's features. Thus non-practical forms of optical illusion were most likely dismissed as curious, but unlikely to earn an artist everlasting fame. It was therefore left to relatively modern artists such as Oscar Reutersvärd, who created the Penrose Stairs (also dubbed the impossible staircase), and psychologists such as Edgar Rubin, who developed the familiar Rubin's vase (sometimes known as the Rubin face or the figure–ground vase), to explore the visual and psychological implications of these images which trick the brain. The significance of this coin therefore is that it pre-dates the work of both of the aforementioned celebrated 'illusionists' by well over two millennia, and demonstrates an appreciation and understanding of optical illusions as an art form, not just a necessary practical expedience.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 394

Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 550-500 BC. Chimaera to left, tunny fish below / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 55; BMFA -; SNG France -. 16.09g, 22mm. Near Mint State. Extremely Rare. The feared Chimaera was a monster of which a brief description in Homer’s Iliad is the earliest surviving literary reference. He depicts it as “a thing of immortal make, not human, lion-fronted and snake behind, a goat in the middle, and snorting out the breath of the terrible flame of bright fire”. It was the offspring of Typhon (last son of Gaia, fathered by Tartarus, and most fearsome of all the monsters of Greek mythology) and Echidna (a half-woman, half-snake, who with her mate Typhon was the origin of many monsters) and a sibling of such monsters as Cerberus and the Lernaean Hydra. According to Greek myth, the Chimaera lived in Lycia, ravaging the land. It was eventually slain by Corinth’s most famous son Bellerophon, with the help of Pegasos, at the command of King Iobates of Lycia. Since the Chimaera was impervious to Bellerophon’s attacks even when mounted on Pegasos, an inventive weapon was required – thus, mounting a block of lead on the end of his spear, Bellerophon lodged the lead in the Chimaera’s mouth so that when it breathed fire the lead melted and blocked its airway, suffocating it. The Chimaera first appears at an early stage in the repertory of the proto-Corinthian pottery-painters, providing some of the earliest identifiable mythological scenes that may be recognized in Greek art. The Corinthian type has been fixed, after some early hesitation, in the 670s BC. In Etruria too, the Chimaera appears in the Orientalizing period of the seventh cenury BC that precedes Etruscan Archaic art, where it found considerable popularity both as a myth and as a motif. The Chimaera appears in Etruscan wall-paintings of the fourth century BC, was one of the principal types employed on the coinage of Populonia, and is the subject of one of the most important surviving Etruscan bronze statues (see Chimera of Arezzo). It is well known that Kyzikos frequently took inspiration for its coin types from the art of other Greek city-states’ coins and wares, however the present type does not quite conform to the Chimaera seen on either the coinage of Populonia or Sikyon. The former’s coins were not widely distributed and on those of the latter the goat always (and the serpent tail usually) faces front. On this occasion therefore it is probable that this depiction copies the design of a vase or other vessel which found its way to Kyzikos - see for example Louvre A478 for a c.560-550 Attic black figure cup with a similarly formatted chimaera.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 407

Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 550-450 BC. Winged figure to right, consisting of man's body with dolphin's head, holding tunny fish in left hand, right hand raised behind head. Von Fritze -, cf. 79 (hemihekte); BMC -; von Aulock -; Franke-Hirmer 599 = Hurter-Liewald II, 79. 16.11g, 20mm. Of the highest rarity, only the second specimen known and the only one in private hands. The type of this coin is at first glance completely perplexing - there are no part man, part dolphin hybrid monsters known in Greek mythology. To better understand the type we must therefore consider other possibilities. The prevalence of winged beings in Kyzikene coinage is a reflection of archaic mythological convention that assigned wings to most divine or sacred entities as an immediately visible and understandable symbol of their nature, and in the case of gods, of their power to move at will across great distances. The presence of wings on this figure therefore indicates a divine identity. Several gods are associated with dolphins, notably Poseidon, Aphrodite and even Dionysos. The latter on one occasion was travelling in disguise among a group of Tyrrhenian pirates, who thinking him only a man, decided to sell him into slavery; Dionysos transformed them into dolphins as they dove into the sea to escape his wrath, charging them for evermore with rescuing sailors in distress. While it could be argued therefore that the image on this coin represents a sailor in mid-transformation, this does not satisfactorily explain why it should be accorded a divine aspect, nor why an obscure myth should be chosen to feature on the coinage of Kyzikos. Instead we should turn to the Homeric Hymns of Apollo, which relate that having been born on the island of Delos in the Cyclades, the god grew to manhood in just four days, and from there set out into the world, looking for a place to make his home, until he arrived at last at Mount Parnassos and the site of Pytho. Finding it occupied already by the oracle of Gaia and guarded by a serpent known as Python, the offspring of Gaia, Apollo slew the monster with an arrow and claimed the site for his own. Yet, despite being the son of Zeus, Apollo had nonetheless committed murder and to cleanse the blood-guilt he was required to serve king Admetos of Pherai in Thessaly for nine years. This he did, and when he returned to Pytho he came in the form of a dolphin bringing with him priests from Crete. The site became known as Delphi, from the Greek word for dolphin: 'delphis'. It is most likely that we are expected to see in this coin's winged dolphin-headed man a representation of Apollo Delphinios: Apollo of Delphi; Apollo the dolphin. This identification is further supported by some myths which name the eponymous founder of Kyzikos' father as being none other than the god Apollo; Aristides (Orat. Cyzic., 1, p.114) goes so far as to speak of the god himself as the founder of the city.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 426

Kingdom of Pergamon, Philetairos I AR Tetradrachm. Circa 270-265 BC. Diademed head of the deified Seleukos I to right / Athena, helmeted and wearing long robes, seated to left on low throne with lion’s feet, resting her left elbow on support in the form of a sphinx, holding a transverse downward pointing spear in her left hand and resting her right on the edge of a round shield adorned with a gorgoneion standing before her; above, ivy leaf; to right, bow. BMC 28; De Hirsch 1459; Kraay/Hirmer 736; Newell 14, XVI-36a (same dies); SNG Lockett 2718 (same dies); SNG von Aulock 7451 (same dies). 17.03g, 28mm, 12h. Near Extremely Fine. Very Rare. Philetairos began his career serving under Antigonos Monophthalmos, but after the Battle of Ipsos in 301 BC where Antigonos was killed, he shifted his allegiance to Lysimachos, who entrusted him with command of the fortress of Pergamon, and a treasury of nine thousand talents of silver (234 metric tonnes). Philetairos served Lysimachos until 282 BC, when perhaps because of conflicts involving the court intrigues of Arsinoe, Lysimachos' third wife, Philetairos deserted Lysimachos, offering himself and the important fortress of Pergamon, along with its treasury to Seleukos, who subsequently defeated and killed Lysimachos at the Battle of Korupedion in 281 BC. Seleukos himself was murdered by Ptolemy Keraunos, a brother of Arsinoe, a few months later at Lysimacheia. After the death of Seleukos, though he and Pergamon remained nominally under Seleukid dominion, Philetairos had considerable autonomy and with the help of his considerable wealth was able to increase his power and influence beyond Pergamon. His first coinage was struck under the reign of Antiochos I, the son of Seleukos, and though it proclaims his loyalty to Seleukos, the presence of his name upon the reverse must have inevitably raised suspicions about his ambitions. Nevertheless, Philetairos never went so far as to proclaim himself king, and remained loyal to the Seleukids until his death in 263. Having no children of his own, Philetairos passed the rule of Pergamon to his nephew Eumenes, who almost immediately revolted against Antiochos, defeating the Seleukid king near Sardes in 261. Eumenes was thus able to free Pergamon, and greatly increased the territory under his control. In his new possessions, he established garrison posts in the north at the foot of Mount Ida called Philetaireia after his adoptive father, and in the east, north-east of Thyatira near the sources of the river Lykos, called Attaleia after his grandfather, and he extended his control south of the river Caïcus to the Gulf of Kyme as well. Demonstrating his independence, he began to strike coins as his predecessor had done, only now the obverse portrait was that of his uncle and adoptive father Philetairos.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 458

Pamphylia, Aspendos AR Stater. Circa 380/75-330/25 BC. Two wrestlers beginning to grapple with each other; between them, ΔΡ / ΕΣ]ΤFΕΔΙΙ[ΥΣ], slinger striding right, preparing to launch sling-bolt; to right, triskeles to left above an uncertain symbol, perhaps a greave; all within rectangular frame of pearls. SNG Copenhagen 220 (same dies); SNG von Aulock 4550 (this coin). 10.96g, 23mm, 3h. Good Extremely Fine. Well struck in high relief, lightly toned with some iridescent highlights. An exceptional example of this series. From the M.M. Collection; Ex B. in B. Collection, Nomos 8, 22 October 2013, lot 198; Ex Bank Leu Auction 48, 10 May 1989, lot 248; Ex H. von Aulock Collection. Coins depicting a pair of wrestlers were first issued by Aspendos beginning circa 400 BC, and continued to be struck until they were replaced by Alexander's 'universal' currency in the 320s. These wrestler coins replaced the earlier types, which had generally featured a militaristic obverse depicting a hoplite warrior or cavalryman, with a triskeles or boar upon the reverse. The wrestler coins may seemingly be divided into two broad groups: the first, clearly minted earlier, shows a great deal of variation in the posture of the wrestlers; the second shows the wrestlers always in the same stances. This second group was in all probability inaugurated by an issue (von Aulock 4568) bearing the inscription MENETΥΣ EΛΥΨA, which Hill (NC 1920, pp. 115-116 ) interprets as the names of the two wrestlers: Menetos and Elypsa. The obvious conclusion is that the wrestlers depicted represent a commemorative statue group erected at Aspendos, with the first group of coins struck after the event commemorated, but before it was set in stone, and the second group with its unchanging stances being struck after the completion of the statue group. The reason for such a work is uncertain however. It is possible that one of Apendos' citizens was victorious at the Olympic games, since such victories are believed to have inspired coin types on more than one occasion (at Messana and on Philipp II of Macedon's coinage). It is also known however that games were instituted at Aspendos in 402 BC, and that they represented a revival of an earlier festival. In any case, the prominence of this type, which endured on their coins for over a century, suggests it was of particular significance to the city, and the importance of this coinage in the region was such that the city of Selge in Pisidia issued a series of its own staters in the 4th century that clearly imitated Aspendos’ coinage.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 470

Kingdom of Pontos. Mithradates VI Eupator AV Stater. Struck in Parion, Bithyno-Pontic year CΚΣ, month A (= October 72 BC). Diademed head right / Stag grazing left; BAΣIΛEΩΣ above, MIΘPAΔATOY / EYΠATOPOΣ in two lines below; to left, star-in-crescent; CKΣ (year) above ΠAP (= Parion) monogram to right, A (month) in exergue; all within Dionysiac wreath of ivy and fruit. Unpublished in the standard references cf. for date: de Callataÿ 1997, p. 49. 8.35g, 19mm, 12h. Good Very Fine. Unique and unpublished, a coin of great numismatic importance. The same year and monogram were previously known from just one tetradrachm (as recorded in Recueil Général). The dating of this coin makes this the latest stater of Mithradates VI of which we are currently aware after the unique example dated two years earlier in October 74 BC (see Roma Numismatics Auction VII, lot 758). This unique piece was struck at Parion during the winter of 72/1 BC after the first engagements of the Third Mithradatic War (73-63 BC). Battered by the Roman armies under the consuls Lucullus and Cotta, who were sent by the Senate to quell the Pontic uprising, Mithradates used the break in hostilities to hastily rebuild his army. This issue then, would have been struck to pay mercenary troops to bolster his forces. This war, sparked when Nikomedes IV of Bithynia died without heirs in 75 and left his kingdom to Rome, would result in great devastation being wrought on Pontos, betrayal on the part of Mithradates son, Machares, who allied himself with Rome, and rebellion by another son, Pharnakes (see lot 765) who assumed control of the army and forced his father to commit suicide.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 510

Seleukid Kings of Syria, Antiochos X Eusebes Philopator AR Tetradrachm. Antioch on the Orontes, First Reign, struck 94 BC. Diademed head right / BAΣIΛEΩΣ ANTIOXOV EVΣEBOVΣ ΦIΛOΠATPOΣ, Zeus Nikephoros seated left, holding sceptre; monogram [above A] to outer left, monogram below throne; all within wreath. SC 2429.1c; HGC 9, 1287 corr. (without sideburn). 15.88g, 38mm, 12h. Fleur De Coin. Lightly toned and lustrous.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 536

Umbria, Ariminum Æ Biunx. Circa 264-241 BC. Head of Gaul right, wearing torque / Dolphin right; below, ŸŸ. HN Italy 5; ICC 232; Haeberlin p. 216, 1-31, pl. 77, 9-12. 67.30g, 29mm, 12h. Ex Artemide XXVIII, 10 April 2010, lot 1033;Ex Münzen & Medaillen 2, 27 March 1998, lot 288.Ancient Ariminum (modern Rimini) was a city of the Ager Gallicus situated on the coast of the Adriatic close to the mouth of the rivers Ariminus (now Marecchia) and Apusa (Ausa) and about 15 km south of the Rubicon. Ariminum was at first of Umbrian and Gallic foundation (Strabo Geography 5.1.11) and became a Latin colony in 268 BC. In the 3rd century Ariminum, together with Arretium, was an important strategic stronghold in the line of defence of the Roman Republic against the Gauls of the Padana plain and Italy.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 807

Hadrian AV Aureus. Rome, AD 125-128. HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS, laureate head right, with drapery on left shoulder / COS III, Sol in prancing quadriga to left, holding whip and wearing chlamys. RIC 168; BMC 378; C –; Calicó 1209; Biaggi 583. 7.30g, 20mm, 7h. Mint State. Rare. While it is very likely that the Romans, like many other cultures, had a reverence for the sun from the earliest of times, the ‘official’ cult of the sun-god, Sol Indiges, did not have a very high profile initially. According to Roman sources, the worship of Sol was introduced by Titus Tatius. A shrine to Sol stood on the banks of the Numicius, near many important shrines of early Latin religion. In Rome itself Sol had an ‘old’ temple in the Circus Maximus according to Tacitus, and this temple remained important in the first three centuries AD. Sol also had an old shrine on the Quirinal Hill where an annual sacrifice was offered on August 9. Romans were therefore well acquainted with the concept of a sun god, though his appearance on coinage was infrequent; it would require an Eastern revival of the cult to bring it to prominence. It is known that by AD 158 the cult of Sol Invictus was established at Rome, as evidenced by a votive military inscription (see Campbell, 1994, The Roman army, 31 BC–AD 337: a sourcebook, p. 43 and Halsberghe 1972, p. 45.), however Rome’s first contact with the Syrian cult that would come to worship the sun under this name probably occurred sometime during the reign of Hadrian, whose Eastern connections led to an intensification of relations with the eastern provinces of the empire. Hadrian had accompanied Trajan on all his campaigns in Dacia and the East, and had been appointed legate of Syria, and remained there to guard the Roman frontiers as Trajan, now seriously ill, returned to Rome. Now the de facto supreme commander of the Eastern Roman army, Hadrian’s position as a potential claimant to the throne became unchallengeable. Even after his accession, Hadrian would remain in the East, consolidating the frontiers of the empire and assisting in the restoration of Egypt, Cyprus, Cyrene and Judaea. Sol does of course appear on the coinage of Trajan (see lot 800) where the type is used as a deliberate and obvious reference to his campaign of conquest in the East. Sol also appears early on in the coinage of Hadrian’s reign (see RIC 16), personifying the East more explicitly still with the inscription ORIENS below the portrait, doubtless representing not only a continuation of Trajan’s legacy but also an indirect reference to the emperor himself who, like the sun, had risen to power in the east. This second major issue of a Sol type appears to have coincided with the anticipation of the emperor’s imminent arrival from his tour of the Eastern provinces, heralding his return in a manner reminiscent of his earlier coinage.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 897

Theodosius II AV Solidus. Constantinople, October AD 437. D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, helmeted, and cuirassed bust facing slightly right, holding spear and shield with horseman motif / FELICITER NUBTIIS, Theodosius standing facing, crowned and nimbate, his hands resting on the shoulders of his son-in-law Valentinian III to left, and his daughter Licinia Eudoxia to right, both crowned and nimbate, who hold hands before Theodosius; CONOB in exergue. RIC 267; MIRB 8. 4.34g, 22mm, 6h. Good Extremely Fine. At least the equal of, if not better than, the example sold at A. Tkalec in January 2000 for CHF 31,000. Of the highest rarity. This coin was struck in Constantinople to commemorate the marriage between the daughter of Theodosius II, Licinia Eudoxia, to the Western Emperor Valentinian III on 29 October 437. As first cousins the marriage represented an attempt to maintain the stability of imperial succession by re-unifying both halves of the Theodosian family and consolidate dynastic power over both halves of the empire. The marriage of the eighteen-year old Valentinian to the fifteen-year old Eudoxia is depicted on this reverse with the senior emperor Theodosius II between the newlyweds, indicating the ultimate source of Valentinian’s power. Indeed, Valentinian had been placed on the throne at the age of six by Theodosius himself, following a period of instability over succession. Whilst the long reigns of Valentinian III and Theodosius II were indicative of periods of relative stability in both the East and West, the Western Empire would merely survive two decades after Valentinian’s death in 454. Though the Theodosian Dynasty would end in the East with the death of Marcian in 457, the Eastern Empire itself would survive another millennium.

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Roma Numismatics Ltd.
Lot 907

Galla Placidia AV Solidus. Uncertain Asian mint, struck under Theodosius II, AD 443. GALLA PLACIDIA AVG, pearl-diademed and draped bust right, wearing single-drop earring and pearl necklace, crowned by manus Dei above / IMP • XXXXII • COS XVII • P • P •, Constantinopolis, draped and wearing plumed helmet, enthroned left, left foot set on prow, holding globus cruciger in extended right hand and sceptre in left; shield set on ground to right; star to left; COMOB in exergue. RIC X 305; Depeyrot 84/6 (Constantinople mint); Biaggi –; DOCLR 834 var. (different number of •'s); G. Giacosa, Women of the Caesars (Milan, 1977), pl. lxv (this coin). 4.46g, 21mm, 6h. Extremely Fine, some minor scratches. Extremely Rare late issue. Ex Triton XVIII, 6 January 2015, lot 1269; Ex Julius Caesar and His Legacy, Numismatic Fine Arts, 13 May 1991, lot 146; Ex Numismatic Fine Arts XXII, 1 June 1989, lot 163. From the NFA sale catalogue, which was not distributed to anyone in the coin trade, but held as a 'secret' auction at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas: "The empress Galla Placidia had a most extraordinary career spanning the first half of the turbulent fifth century. Born about 388, she was the daughter of Theodosius the Great by his second wife Galla, and half-sister of Arcadius and Honorius. Taken prisoner by Alaric during the sack of Rome by the Visigoths in 410, she was eventually married to his successor, Ataulf. Following Ataulf's death she was ransomed to the Romans for 600,000 measures of grain, and in 417 married the general Constantius by whom she had a son, the future emperor Valentinian III, and a daughter, Honoria. She acted as regent for the first twelve years of her son's reign (425-437), but then gradually faded into the background as the political influence of the general Aetius increased. Her final years were devoted to the erection of sacred buildings in Ravenna, and her tomb, which contained also the remains of Honorius and Constantius III, is still to be seen in the city. Coins honouring Galla Placidia were struck both in the western empire, under her son Valentinian III, and in the East by her nephew Theodosius II. She may already have held the rank of Augusta under Honorius, but if not she certainly received it in 424 when Valentinian was created Caesar. This attractive solidus, issued from an uncertain Asian mint, may be closely dated by Theodosius II's titles which appear on the reverse. His forty-second imperatorial acclamation, corresponding to the years of his reign, covers the period 10 January 443 to 10 January 444, whilst the celebration of his eighteenth and final consulship on 1 January 444 indicates that the issue to which the present coin belongs had ceased before the end of the year 443. After the reign of Theodosius II the seated figure of Constantinopolis disappeared from the gold coinage of the eastern empire, not to be seen again until the reign of Justin II more than a century later."

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Greenslade Taylor Hunt
Lot 227

[CHILDRENS] Milne, A.A. Winnie-the-Pooh, first edition, Methuen, London, 1926, original pictorial dark green cloth gilt, top edges gilt, map endpapers, illustrations by Ernest Shepard, octavo.

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Greenslade Taylor Hunt
Lot 226

[CHILDRENS] Eighteen 'Buffalo Bill' annuals (some duplication); twelve Richmal Crompton 'William' titles, including William the Explorer, first edition, Newnes, London, 1960, the others reprints; and twelve ladybird books, (42).

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