Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 521-478 BC. Head of a lion facing, mane standing proud behind; seal to left, swimming downwards / Quadripartite incuse square. Bodenstedt 53; Traité II, 2 pl. CLVIII, 8. 2.57g, 11mm. Extremely Fine. Rare. A sharp, well centred and very attractive specimen. The design of this type has been borrowed from the city of Rhegion in Bruttium, which used this facing lion's head seen from above as their civic type. The manner of its depiction is however stylistically distinct from that of Rhegion, and shows the lion as a much leaner animal, with a less pronounced head of hair, but a very prominent mane that is seen standing up behind the lion's head. This is probably the finest and most complete example offered at auction in over a decade.
We found 209236 price guide item(s) matching your search
There are 209236 lots that match your search criteria. Subscribe now to get instant access to the full price guide service.
Click here to subscribe- List
- Grid
-
209236 item(s)/page
Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 478-387 BC. Ram standing right, scratching nose with right hind hoof; below, small seal to left / Quadripartite incuse square. Bodenstedt 59; SNG von Aulock -; SNG Copenhagen -; BMC -; Boston MFA 1901. 2.54g, 10mm. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; only three examples are noted by Bodenstedt, all in public collections (Boston, Karlsruhe, and s’Gravenhage). A most charming pastoral motif, finely rendered in high relief. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 478-450 BC. Facing bearded head of Silenos, wearing ivy wreath; to left, small seal upward / Quadripartite incuse square. Bodenstedt 67 (dies a/α); Gemini VI, lot 187 (same die and punch); Kastner 4, lot 125 (same die and punch). 2.57g, 11mm. Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, apparently only the eighth known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 478-437 BC. Bearded head of Zeus Ammon wearing ram's horn to left; behind, seal swimming downwards to left / Quadripartite incuse square. Bodenstedt 81; Boston MFA -; BMC -; Leu 13, 1975, 239; J. Hirsch 25, 1909, 2186. 2.55g, 11mm. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare. Apparently only the fourth example known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 478-387 BC. Bearded head of Tissaphernes to left, wearing satrapal headdress / Quadripartite incuse square punch. Bodenstedt 86; SNG von Aulock –; Boston MFA –; BMC –; Pozzi –; Traité –; Winzer 6.6; CNG e342, lot 287; CNG e210, lot 43; Gemini VI, lot 192; Peus 361, lot 184. 2.55g, 11mm. Mint State. Extremely Rare, only one example recorded by Bodenstedt, and apparently only the fifth known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection. Since it is known that satraps issued coins in their own name with their own portraits, both Bodenstedt and Winzer named the satrap depicted on this coin as Tissaphernes on the basis of parallels between the portrait as seen here and those on other coinages. Indeed there are distinct physical similarities (the shape of the nose, brow and eye sockets) between the present type and the portrait of Tissaphernes on the Kyzikene-issued tetradrachms of Athenian owl reverse type struck c.420-395. Tissaphernes was born in 445 into an important Persian family; his grandfather was Hydarnes, who was a general under Xerxes, and commander of the Immortals during the invasion of Greece in 480. He rose to the position of commander in chief of the Persian armies in Asia Minor, and was appointed satrap of Lydia and Karia. Yet because Tissaphernes preferred duplicitous negotiation to open warfare, in 408 he was replaced in his position as general by the King’s second son, Cyrus the Younger. When King Darius II died in 404, his eldest son Artaxerxes II was crowned. Cyrus, seeking the throne for himself, attempted to have his brother assassinated, though Tissaphernes learned of the plot and informed Artaxerxes. Imprisoned, but soon pardoned through the intercession of their mother, Cyrus was sent back to his command, where he now gathered an army which included Xenophon’s ‘Ten Thousand’ Greek mercenaries. Tissaphernes was instrumental in warning Artaxerxes of his perfidious brother’s intentions, and in gathering an army to oppose Cyrus. Cyrus was undone at the Battle of Cunaxa in 401, through the disobedience of the Greek commander Klearchos of Sparta, who refused to move his troops to the centre of the line (wary of his undefended right flank) in order to directly attack Artaxerxes. The Greeks instead charged and scatted the loyal Persian left wing, but meanwhile Cyrus died in his assault on the centre while attempting to kill or capture his brother. Tissaphernes was then able to rout all of Cyrus’ leaderless and demoralised forces, except the Greek mercenaries who steadfastly maintained their discipline, and were unassailable by frontal assault. Tissaphernes therefore dealt with the Greeks by supplying them with food and leading them northwards for home. He invited the senior Greek commanders to attend a feast, whereupon he took them prisoner, led them before Artaxerxes, and had them decapitated. As a reward for his loyalty, Artaxerxes gave Tissaphernes one of his own daughters in marriage and restored him as governor of Lydia and commander in chief of the Persian armies in Asia Minor. Xenophon, until then a middle ranking officer, was hereupon elected one of the leaders of the Ten Thousand. In his Anabasis, he describes Tissaphernes as lacking in all honour, the supreme example of faithlessness and oath-breaking, for he used his hospitality to delude and decoy his victims before having them executed - a treachery of the most heinous kind.
Ionia, Phokaia EL Hekte. Circa 387-326 BC. Head of Athena left, wearing crested Corinthian helmet decorated with seal / Quadripartite incuse square. CNG 93, lot 391; Triton XVIII, lot 627; otherwise unpublished (but cf. Bodenstedt 111 for a similar type with serpent on helmet and seal below). 2.55g, 11mm. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, apparently only the second known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 521-478 BC. Facing gorgoneion with protruding tongue / Incuse head of Herakles left, wearing lion skin headdress; small incuse square behind, incuse club below. Bodenstedt 19.2; BMC -; Boston MFA -; SNG Copenhagen -; SNG von Aulock -. 2.52g, 10mm, 6h. Mint State. Extremely Rare, apparently only the second known after one example recorded by Bodenstedt in the National Museum, Athens. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection. This exceptionally rare variety with the incuse head of Herakles facing left also displays an intricately detailed gorgon. Aside from the careful attention the engraver has lavished on such details as the gorgon's teeth and serpent heads, we also see the scaly skin the gorgon has been given between her hair and eyebrows. Even on a larger coin this would be impressive - that this fine work has been accomplished on such a small flan is nothing short of astounding.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 521-478 BC. Forepart of a bridled horse right, ΛΕ below / Incuse head of roaring lion right; rectangular punch behind. Bodenstedt 20; SNG Copenhagen -; SNG von Aulock -; Traité II 2148; Weber 5602. 2.53g, 11mm, 6h. Near Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, only three examples recorded by Bodenstedt. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection. The present obverse is one of the very few produced at Mytilene that actually names the island (Lesbos) on which it was produced.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-427 BC. Bearded head of Priapos right, wearing tainia / Head of female (nymph Chione or Dione?) right, hair in sphendone, within shallow incuse square. Bodenstedt 43; HGC 6, 969; SNG von Aulock –; Boston MFA –; BMC 47–8; de Luynes 2556. Near Mint State. Extremely Rare, only four examples noted by Bodenstedt, and just three in CoinArchives. In exceptional state of preservation, and very finely detailed. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-427 BC. Young female head to right, hair tied up with ribbon / Facing head of wolf (or lion) within incuse square. Bodenstedt 48; SNG von Aulock 7728; cf. Traité II, 2172, pl. CLX, 6 (same rev. die). 2.59g, 11mm, 5h. Mint State. Extremely Rare, only three examples listed by Bodenstedt, and just one on CoinArchives. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-428/7 BC. Head of Persephone right, hair in bunch behind / Head of roaring lion to right within incuse square. Bodenstedt 49; Boston MFA -; SNG Copenhagen -. 2.53g, 11mm, 8h. Near Mint State. Very Rare, and probably the finest known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 370 BC. Facing gorgoneion / Incuse head of lynx facing. Bodenstedt 53.2 (dies a/a); Traité II 2, no. 2146; pl. 159, 23 (same dies). 2.57g, 10mm, 6h. Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, apparently only the fourth known specimen, and one of just two in private hands. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
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. Near Mint State. Very Rare, Bodenstedt lists only 8 examples; CoinArchives records six, of which this is the finest by far. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection. 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 predates the work of both of the aforementioned celebrated ‘illusionists’ by well over two milennia, and demonstrates an appreciation and understanding of optical illusions as an art form, not just a necessary practical expedience.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-427 BC. Laureate head of Apollo to right / Rock partridge walking to right, linear frame around; all within incuse square. Bodenstedt 58; Traité II 2199; SNG von Aulock 1699. 2.56g, 11mm, 11h. Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; only five examples noted by Bodenstedt, and just two on CoinArchives. The finest known example. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 454-427 BC. Laureate head of Apollo right / Goat head to right within square liear frame. Bodenstedt 59; HGC 6, 985. 2.56g, 11mm, 1h. Good Extremely Fine. Very Rare, only four other examples on CoinArchives, of which this is the finest. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 357-326 BC. Laureate head of youthful Apollo three-quarters facing / Head of an Amazon to right wearing ornamented helmet with cheek guards up. Bodenstedt 64.3; Traité II, pl. 160, 38; BMC 94, pl. 34, 8. 2.55g, 10mm, 12h. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, apparently the sixth known, and in exceptional state of preservation. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection. The obverse of this beautiful coin was inspired by the remarkable and widely praised ‘Parthenon Group’ tetradrachms of Amphipolis issued during that city’s short-lived war with Philip II of Macedon (see Kurt Regling, ZfN 33 (1922), p. 48, Anm. 2 and p. 60). It is a direct stylistic copy of this brief issue, which has been described as ‘the most beautiful of all the facing-head tetradrachms of Amphipolis and one of the prettiest of all ancient Greek coins’.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 412-378 BC. Head of Ares right, wearing crested helmet decorated with a griffin on bowl / Facing Corinthian helmet, linear frame around; all within incuse square. Bodenstedt 66 = SNG von Aulock 1728 = Jameson 2245; BMC -; SNG Copenhagen -; Boston MFA -. 2.53g, 10mm, 7h. Near Mint State. Extremely Rare, apparently the third known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 412-378 BC. Head of Artemis-Kybele right, hair in sakkos / Head of Telchine left, hair in sakkos, lamp at forehead; all in linear square within shallow incuse square. Bodenstedt 68; HGC 5, 994; Boston MFA 1696; Triton XI, lot 228. 2.56g, 10mm, 1h. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare, only 6 examples known to Bodenstedt. Among the finest known examples. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 360-340 BC. Head of Athena to right, wearing crested Attic helmet / Facing lion-scalp facing, square linear frame around; all within incuse square. Bodenstedt 72; SNG von Aulock 1705. 2.56g, 10mm, 12h. Good Extremely Fine. Very Rare, and possibly the finest known. From the Kleines Meisterwerk Collection.
Lesbos, Mytilene EL Hekte. Circa 412-378 BC. Head of Kybele right, wearing turreted crown and single-pendant earring / Head of Hermes right, wearing petasos, in linear square within shallow incuse square. Bodenstedt 75; HGC 6, 1001; SNG von Aulock 1725; Boston MFA 1714. 2.55g, 10mm, 11h. Extremely Fine. Rare.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Hekte. Circa 600-550 BC. Head of griffin to left, eating head of tunny fish / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze -; Hurter & Liewald I 28a; SNG France -; SNG von Aulock -; Boston MFA -; Tkalec & Rauch 1987, lot 100 (same dies). 2.71g, 10mm. Good Very Fine. Extremely Rare, one of just five known, and certainly the finest.
Etruria, Populonia AR 20 Asses. 3rd century BC. Head of Menvra facing three-quarter left, wearing three-crested helmet, earring and necklace, X either side of head / Etruscan legend 'pvplvna' around star of four rays and crescent. EC I, 67.16 (O1/R1, this coin); HN Italy 157-158; Sambon 65. 8.47g, 25mm. Very Fine. Very Rare; one of only eleven examples in private hands. From the VCV Collection.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Hekte. Circa 550-500 BC. Bearded head of Poseidon to left, wearing a helmet in the form of the head of a sea monster; below, tunny fish to right / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze -; cf. Hurter & Liewald, SNR 81 (2002), p. 28, no. 17; SNG Aulock 7291. 2.63g, 11mm. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare. The male head on this coin has been variously identified as a nameless hero, Perseus wearing a griffin skin helmet, or Herakles wearing a lion skin. Other specimens of the type have revealed that the helmet in fact bears a fin-like crest and pointed ears (which on the present coin are off the flan). It has therefore seems that the headdress is actually in the form of a ketos, one of the familiar sea monsters of Greek myth which is most frequently seen on Sicilian coinage, in particular that of Katane and Syracuse. Given that the bearded head is less likely to represent Perseus (who appears beardless, as on von Fritze 65) it could well be Herakles, who killed a ketos in the course of rescuing the Trojan princess Hesione, daughter of Laomedon and sister of Priam. According to some versions of the myth, Herakles was swallowed whole by the monster, and slew it by hacking at its innards for three days until it died, by which time he had lost all his hair. Perhaps during the course of this contest, Herakles temporarily misplaced his trademark lion skin headdress, and resorted to covering his baldness with a nice ketos skin hat. We must bear in mind however that Kyzikene electrum is more frequently influenced by religion (and, it has been supposed, by cult images in particular) than by myth, and so we must look elsewhere for a positive identification - given the marine monster, Poseidon is a prime candidate. Although the god is more frequently encountered with a trident attribute to facilitate identification, a ketos headdress attribute is also appropriate. F. Catalli (Monete Etrusche, Roma 1990, p. 90) included in his work an image of the remarkable Volterra kelebe which depicts a very similar god head wearing a ketos, which though formally identified as Hades, must in fact be Poseidon due to the presence on the one side of a marine monster, and on the other of a bridled horse – both symbols of the God of the Sea. This identification is confirmed by the Etruscan coinage – see Vecchi, Etruscan Coinage I, part 1 pp. 319-321, nos. 2-4 – on these coins we find an identical head identified as Nethuns (Neptune-Poseidon), paired with a reverse showing a hippocamp and border of waves.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 550-500 BC. Heads of lion and ram, conjoined, back-to-back; below, tunny fish to left / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 54; cf. SNG France 190 (hekte); Boston MFA 1422 = Warren 1543. 16.06g, 22mm. Very Fine. Very Rare, only three other examples have been offered at auction in the past fifteen years.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 550-500 BC. Half-length bust of a winged female deity to left, wearing kekryphalos headdress, round earring and long-sleeved chiton, in her right hand holding a tunny fish by the tail, and raising a flower to her chin; bust truncation indicated by dotted line between parallel lines / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 75; SNG France 205; Boston MFA 1448 = Warren 1519. 16.15g, 19mm. Near Extremely Fine, struck on a vast, elongated flan. Very Rare, and in excellent condition for the type. The winged figure on this coin of Kyzikos is most frequently simply described as a 'winged female', though on occasion numismatists have ventured to suggest that the depiction is that of a harpy, one of the mythical ‘snatchers’ who were sent by the gods to torment Phineos, the blind seer-king of Thrace, for his transgressions. Though in the Homeric poems the harpies are nothing more than the personifications of storm winds, Hesiod (c. 750-650 BC) described them as the daughters of Thaumas by the Oceanid Electra; fair-haired and winged maidens, who surpassed the winds and birds in the rapidity of their flight. Archaic pottery depicts them thus, in a manner that closely resembles the winged figures on the coins of Kaunos in Karia - see in particular Wagner Museum L164 – black figure clay vase. It was only later tradition that portrayed the harpies as hideous half-woman, half-bird creatures - a development resulting from a confusion of harpies with sirens. By the time of Aeschylus (c. 525-455 BC), this transformation was largely complete, though the harpy’s ‘beautiful’ image is still occasionally seen as late as 480 BC - see the J. Paul Getty Museum hydria/kalpis by Kleophrades, on which the harpies are rendered as young winged girls. The identification of the winged figure on this stater as a harpy is therefore possible, though other identifications are equally plausible. Iris, goddess of the rainbow, was depicted as a winged woman with a herald’s staff, as likewise was Nike, though the latter usually carried a wreath or palm. However, none of these beings was associated with flowers, which above all were an attribute of Aphrodite and Kore-Persephone. Only one parallel for the present type exists in surviving Greek art: the 5th century BC funerary stele now known as ‘The Exaltation of the Flower’, held in the Louvre. Carved in a similarly severe archaic style, the stele depicts two female figures holding up flowers; the left figure in a pose very similar to that shown on this coin. Those figures have been identified either as unknown mortals, or as Demeter and her daughter Persephone - the view favoured by its discoverer Léon Heuzey. The wings on our figure clearly identify her as a goddess though, and the flower is most likely the key to understanding her identity. Kore-Persephone, daughter of Demeter, therefore seems to be a logical choice: she was gathering flowers when Hades came to abduct her, and her return to earth each year was heralded by the blossoming of the meadows. Her overwhelming prominence on the later coinage of Kyzikos further strengthens the case for her depiction here. Regardless of her identity, the winged deity on this coin is rendered in exquisite detail, from her ornamented cap to her expressive face and crinkly chiton. The same treatment of the chiton can be observed in major art of the archaic period, for example in the east frieze of the Siphnian treasury at Delphi.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Hekte. Circa 500-450 BC. Bearded facing head of Silenos, tunny fish swimming upwards on either side / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 77; SNG France 208; SNG von Aulock 7269; Rosen Coll. 455. 2.67g, 11mm. Good Extremely Fine; exceptionally complete for the type, well centred and among the finest known examples. Very Rare.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 550-500 BC. Head of Silenos facing; two tunny fish upward to either side / Quadripartite incuse square. CNG 75, 23 May 2007, lot 336; cf. Von Fritze 77 (fractions); SNG France -; Hurter & Liewald I, 77. 15.96g, 19mm. Very Fine. Extremely Rare, the fifth known. Of the other four examples, one was sold by CNG in 2007, and two were noted by Hurter & Liewald as being in the von Aulock Collection (but unpublished) and the Velkov Collection (Vinchon, 24 Nov. 94), lot 61 = CH II, p. 7, 2. The other was sold by Roma Numismatics in 2013: Auction V, lot 364.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 500-450 BC. Roaring griffin standing to left on tunny fish, right foreleg raised and tongue protruding / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 99; Boston MFA 1455; Gulbenkian 623. 16.12g, 20mm. Near Mint State. Very Rare. An electrum stater of superlative quality, certainly the finest known of the type, and by quality one of the very best of all known Kyzikene staters. An extremely impressive coin. A mythical creature of great antiquity, griffins are represented in Egyptian and Persian art from as early as the fourth millennium BC; from the middle bronze age (c.1950-1550 BC) they begin appearing in Syria, the Levant and Anatolia, and they can be found in 15th century BC frescoes in the throne room of the bronze age palace at Knossos. Closely associated with guarding precious possessions and treasure, and so frequently utilised as a motif in such capacities, the griffin came also to be a symbol of divine power and so a guardian of the divine. Half lion and half eagle, and so possessing the power and dignity of both of these majestic animals, these fearsome creatures in time came to be associated with the vast quantities of gold that flowed south out of the vast northern wildernesses into Greek and Persian lands. This seemingly endless source of gold caused a great deal of speculation among the Greeks as to its origin; the myths and fables eventually found form in the idea of a land they called Hyperborea (‘beyond the north wind’). Homer, Pindar, Hesiod and Strabo all make reference to this legendary place, and Herodotus writes of it: “But in the north of Europe there is by far the most gold. In this matter again I cannot say with assurance how the gold is produced, but it is said that one-eyed men called Arimaspians steal it from griffins. But I do not believe this, that there are one-eyed men who have a nature otherwise the same as other men. The most outlying lands, though, as they enclose and wholly surround all the rest of the world, are likely to have those things which we think the finest and the rarest. (The Histories, 3.116) Though it is generally agreed that Hyperborea never actually existed as any single place, but was rather an amalgam of various fragments of truth and flights of fancy, one possible source for the northern gold may be found in the Altai Mountains of Skythia (straddling modern day Kazakhstan, Mongolia, China and Russia), whose name ‘Altai’ in Mongolian literally means ‘Gold Mountain’. It has been further suggested (Mayor, 1991) that this region, rich in gold run-off from the mountains, and which is also holds a great many Protoceratops fossils, may have been the ultimate source of the Greek myth of griffin-guarded gold. The sandstone rock formations skirting the gold deposits continually reveal through erosion bleached white, fully articulated skeletons of these prominently beaked quadruped dinosaurs, and being conspicuous against the red sediment would have been noticed by early inhabitants and travellers. Indeed, 5th century BC human remains in the Altai Mountains have been found bearing griffin tattoos, occasionally accompanied by gold griffin artefacts. That this symbol of power should be adopted by Kyzikos for its coinage again and again is hardly surprising then, given that the city possessed a virtual monopoly on gold coinage in the area from Troy to Ionia, in the Propontis, in Bithynia and in the Black Sea regions, and the animal’s fabled reputation as a guardian of the precious metal.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 500-450 BC. Forepart of winged stag left; tunny fish below / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 102; Boston 1434; Jameson 2181; SNG von Aulock 7281; Greenwell -; SNG France -; BMC -. 16.21g, 19mm. Extremely Fine. Lustrous surfaces, extremely well preserved for the issue. Very Rare.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 500-450 BC. Europa, hair tied up in bun and wearing short-sleeved garment, seated on the back of Zeus in the form of a white bull who charges to left, her right hand holding on to a horn, the left resting on his rump; below, tunny fish to left / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 108, pl. III, 27; Boston MFA 1477; SNG France 250. 16.07g, 19mm. Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare. This issue appears to have been fairly uniformly struck on flans that were just a little too short - both the von Fritze and Boston specimens are missing the top part of Europa's head. The design is nevertheless charming and well executed, at least insofar as the die engraving is concerned. The reverse design of this coin is almost identical to one featured on a unique tetradrachm of Abdera (Roma IV, lot 242), which shows Europa in the same pose on the back of the bull. Both follow a well established artistic and literary tradition that can be traced back as far as the 8th century BC, according to Herodotus’ dating of Homer, though the myth itself is certainly much older than its earliest known literary appearance (in the Iliad), and its earliest securely dateable visual appearance, which is not seen until the mid-7th century BC. We find the same treatment of the scene in Ovid’s Metamorphoses many centuries later: “And gradually she lost her fear, and he offered his breast for her virgin caresses, his horns for her to wind with chains of flowers until the princess dared to mount his back, her pet bull’s back, unwitting whom she rode. Then - slowly, slowly down the broad, dry beach - first in the shallow waves the great god set his spurious hooves, then sauntered further out ‘til in the open sea he bore his prize. Fear filled her heart as, gazing back, she saw the fast receding sands. Her right hand grasped a horn, the other lent upon his back; her fluttering tunic floated in the breeze.”
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 500-450 BC. Facing gorgoneion with mouth open and tongue protruding, six serpents on top of head, another below each ear; below, tunny fish to left / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 129, pl. IV, 15; Boston 1445 = Warren 1492; cf. SNG von Aulock 7295 (hemihekte); SNG France -. 16.09g, 19mm. Good Very Fine. Extremely Rare. While the origin or inspiration for many of the types used at Kyzikos is obscure or uncertain, the apotropaic design used on this type may be reasonably considered to have been taken from the drachms of Apollonia Pontika on the Black Sea coast of Thrace. Both on account of its relative proximity to Kyzikos and the latter's strategic location on the main trade route, Apollonia would inevitably have had close trade economic ties with this city.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Hemihekte. Circa 450-400 BC. Head of Attis facing right, wearing ornamented Phrygian cap, [tunny fish below] / Quadripartite incuse square. Boston 1523; W. Greenwell, ‘The Electrum Coinage of Kyzikos’, NC 1887, 56, pl. III, 5; cf. Von Fritze 142 (stater and hekte); SNG France 291 (stater and hekte). 1.32g, 9mm. Good Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare - one of possibly only four known specimens. From the Ambrose Collection.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Hekte. Circa 450 BC. Naked boy (Taras?), seated astride a dolphin to left, holding a tunny by the tail in his extended right hand, a tunny below / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze -; Rosen Coll. 487. 2.67g, 12mm. Very Rare. Very Fine. From the Ambrose Collection; Ex Roma Numismatics III, 31 March 2012, lot 270.
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Mid 4th century BC. Large race horse rearing up to right, ridden by Phillip II of Macedon, bearded, wearing kausia, diadem and chlamys; tunny fish to right below / Speckled quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 168, pl. 5, 16; Greenwell -; SNG France 315; Boston MFA Supp. 151; Lanz 157, lot 137. 16.00g, 19mm. Near Mint State. A splendid coin, bright and sharply struck. Extremely Rare, and by far the finest known of very few examples. The early Milesian foundation of Kyzikos on the isthmus of the Arktouros peninsula, protruding from the south-west coast of the Propontis, was ideally sited for its role as commercial intermediary par excellence at the centre of east-west trade. The earliest electrum coinage of Kyzikos with its characteristic ‘tunny fish’ emblem dates from about 550, and was based on the Phokaic weight standard of about 16.1g, the equivalent value to a Persian gold daric of 8.4g. They were contemporarily called Kyzikenes and the distribution of hoard finds makes it clear that it was the acceptable currency for trade between Thrace and the northern coasts of the Black Sea, and from Athens to Ionia, so much so that Kyzikenes are mentioned in Athenian inventories (cf. ACGC p. 261-2). This electrum coinage bears a wide variety of types, many of which are mythological or historical and types copied from contemporary Greek poleis from Magna Graecia to the Levant. Before one can identify the obverse type of this splendid Kyzikene, it is important to first secure a date for the issue. The celebrated Prinkipo Hoard of over 200 Kyzikenes, 16 Pantikapaion and 4 Lampsakos gold staters (IGCH 1239; Regling ZfN 1931, pp. 1-46) places the burial date to about 335-4 BC, a chronology followed by most modern studies (see Hurter and Liewald SNR 81, 83 and 85). Even if in 1974 the Philip II gold staters were discovered to be a separate hoard (AJA 1974, 308; CH 2, 1976, 41), this low chronology is confirmed by the presence of three specific copied types: the Alexander the Great young Herakles head type derived from his imperial tetradrachms (von Fritze 194; ACGC 964); a young jockey with raised hand on horse derived from Philip II’s later tetradrachms (von Fritze 214; SNG France 344); the present type with a bearded figure wearing kausia and chlamys riding a horse derived from Philip II’s early tetradrachms which celebrate his victory at the Olympic Games in 356 (cf. Le Rider p. 5, 1; Kraay-Hirmer 562), the same year that Alexander was born. Added to these examples are the Philip II bearded portraits types identified by M. R. Kaiser-Raiss (SNR 63, 1983, Philip II. Und Kyzikos, pp. 27-53; von Fritze 197 and 199). Together these types paint a picture of the last issues of Kyzikene electrum, deriving their types directly from the coinage of the liberating Greek forces led by Alexander. The suggestion that the reverse figure should be identified as Kyzikos, the eponymous founder of the city who was accidentally killed by the Argonauts, lacks any credible supporting arguments, and falls down when the dating of the issue is taken into consideration. With no identifying features besides a kausia, it would be highly illogical to suppose that such an issue, struck at this late period, would represent the mythical founder of the city. Given the evidence presented by the Prinkipo Hoard, and the clear stylistic similarities, an identification of the rider as Philip II of Macedon seems secure.
Kingdom of Lydia, Kroisos AV Stater. Sardes, circa 564/53-550/39 BC. Light standard. mint. Confronted foreparts of lion and bull / Two incuse squares. Berk 3; Traité I 401–3; SNG von Aulock 2875; SNG Lockett 2983 = Pozzi 2726; Athena Fund I 60; BMC 31; Boston MFA 2073; Gulbenkian 757; Zhuyuetang 11. 8.08g, 16mm. Fleur De Coin. Superbly lustrous, exceptionally rare in such quality. Kroisos is credited with issuing the first true gold coins with a standardised purity for general circulation. His kingdom represented the last bastion against Persian expansion westwards into Greek lands; encouraged by a prediction of the Delphic Oracle that if he attacked Persia he would destroy a great empire, Kroisos made his preparations for war with Cyrus the Great. The war resulted in defeat for Kroisos; his numerically superior army was smashed, and the capital Sardes was captured along with Kroisos and his family, who were immolated on the orders of Cyrus. Lydia became a satrapy of the Persian Empire, though it continued to mint coins in the traditional types, and indeed the legendary wealth of Kroisos was used by Cyrus to form the basis of a new Persian gold standard currency.
![Dynasts of Lycia, Ekuvemi AR Tetrobol. Circa 480-460 BC. Boar walking left / EKU-VE-[MI] (Lycian), triskeles within incuse sq](https://cdn.globalauctionplatform.com/fd0beea0-94bb-4568-87e5-a50800efba14/7292e72e-3640-4cdd-c938-8107b5a60664/468x382.jpg)
Dynasts of Lycia, Esbehi (?) AR Stater. Circa 480-460 BC. Uncertain mint in eastern Lycia. Pegasos flying left / Head of bull left within incuse square. Peus 407, 2012, 696 (same dies); Müseler/Nollé III, 44; cf. Traité II, 215 and SNG von Aulock 4088 (forepart of bull). 9.18g, 19mm, 3h. Very Fine. Extremely Rare. A most unusual engraving of Pegasos, who has here taken on a most vicious appearance.
Dynasts of Lycia, Kheriga of Antiphellos AR Tetrobol. Circa 440-430 BC. Female head left, wearing hairband, wearing necklace / KHE-RIG-A-VE-HNT (Lycian), tetraskeles within which, owl standing left, all within incuse square. Mørkholm-Zahle, AA 47, 5; BMC 105 pl. 6, 6; Traité II, 369 p. 99, 26. 2.66g, 17mm, 7h. Very Fine. Extremely Rare.
Dynasts of Lycia, Teththiveibi AR Tetrobol. Circa 440-430 BC. Facing head of Silenos / Tetraskeles, TETHTHIVEIBI in Lycian script around; all within beaded square frame and incuse square. BMC 88, pl. 5, 6; SNG Berry 1164. 2.67g, 16mm. Very Fine. Extremely Rare, one of very few known specimens.
Dynasts of Lycia, Kherei (?) AR Obol. Circa 430-410 BC. Helmeted head of Athena right / Head of Kherei right, wearing kyrbasia, symbol in right field, all within incuse circle. CNG e-sale 338, 2014, 100; for type and symbol cf. SNG von Aulock 4175 and Traité 346 (stater); 0.59g, 9mm, 2h. Very Fine. Rare.
Dynasts of Lycia, Ddenevele AR Triobol. Circa 410-400 BC. Head of satrap right, wearing kyrbasia / DDENEVE (Lycian), helmeted head of Athena right. wearing necklace, Kh behind, Λ below, all within round incuse. Winzer 24.4 (same dies); cf. Traité 410, pl. 101, 7. 1.86g, 14mm, 2h. Extremely Fine. Very Rare.
Dynasts of Lycia, Kherei AR Stater. Uncertain mint, circa 410-390 BC. Helmeted head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet decorated with three olive leaves and spiral / Forepart of Lamassu to right; ẼERẼI (sic, in Lycian) before; all within incuse square. Mørkholm & Zahle II -; Falghera -; Traité -; BMC Lycia -; SNG Copenhagen Suppl. 453 (same dies); SNG von Aulock -. 8.46g, 19mm, 11h. Struck from a worn obv. die, but otherwise Extremely Fine. Rare. This coin bears a very attractive depiction of the forepart of a lamassu, an ancient Assyrian protective deity with the head of a man, the body of an ox (sometimes a lion), and the wings of a bird. First appearing in Assyria during the reign of Tiglath-Pileser I (circa 1114–1076 BC) as a symbol of power, the lamassu motif was used extensively by the Assyrians; typically, lamassu were prominently placed as guardians at the entrances of cities and palaces.
Dynasts of Lycia, Kherei AR Stater. Uncertain mint, circa 410-390 BC. Helmeted head of Athena right / Forepart of bull to right, ẼERẼI (sic, in Lycian) above; all within incuse square. Cf. Mørkholm & Zahle II 33 (quarter stater); S. Hurter, 'A New Lycian Coin Type: Kherêi, Not Kuperlis,' INJ 14 (2000-2), pl. 2, 8; Triton XVI, lot 508 = Triton VII, lot 283. 8.56g, 19mm, 6h. Good Very Fine. Very Rare.
Lycia, Kadyanda AR Stater. Time of dynast Kheriga, circa 410-400 BC. Head of Athena right, wearing plain Attic crested helmet with raised cheek guard / KHADAVAVTUNE (Lycian), head of Hermes left, wearing lion' skin, kerykeion behind, all within incuse square. Traité 415 pl. 101; Peus sale 407, 765. 11. 7.97g, 21mm, 7h. Very Fine. Extremely Rare.
Kingdom of Pontos and Cimmerian Bosporos, Pharnakes II AV Stater. Pantikapaion, 53/52 BC. Diademed bust of Pharnakes right, with luxuriant hair falling behind neck / Apollo, semi-draped, seated to left on lion-footed throne, holding laurel branch over tripod, left elbow resting on kithara at his side; BAΣIΛEΩΣ BAΣIΛEΩN above, MEΓAΛOY ΦAPNAKOY below, date ΣMΣ to right, three pellets to left. K.V. Golenko and J.P. Karyszkowski, 'The Gold Coinage of King Pharnaces of the Bosporus,' in Numismatic Chronicle 1972, p. 38, fig. 3 (same dies); MacDonald 185/3; HGC 7, 198. 8.25g, 20mm, 12h. Minor die break on reverse, otherwise Mint State. Extremely Rare – the second known specimen. The three pellets symbol depicted on the reverse of this rare coin is known on Sasanian coins where it held great significance as an old Iranian sacral symbol of power (cf. Ardashir I, SNS I Type IV/3a). Such pellets apparently with the same meaning, and are also found on the debased late staters of the Sarmatian king Thothorses of the Bosporos (cf. MacDonald 647/1). Born the youngest son of Mithradates VI, he nonetheless became the sole heir after the deaths of his brothers Arkathios and Machares – the former died while on campaign in Macedonia in 86, the latter committed suicide after rebelling against Mithradates. After his father's final defeat and escape to Pantikapaion, Pharnakes had no desire to support his father's continued wish to wage war with the Romans. He therefore began a plot to remove Mithradates from power. Though his plans were discovered, the army supported him, not wishing to engage Pompey and the Roman armies again. So in 63 BC, surrounded, Mithradates VI was forced to take his own life. Pharnakes II quickly sent an embassy to Pompey with the body of his father, to be at the disposal of Pompey. Pompey granted Pharnakes the Bosporan Kingdom, and named him friend and ally of Rome. Like his father, he could not resist taking advantage of the war between Caesar and Pompey, thinking Rome to be too distracted to prevent his conquests of Colchis and Lesser Armenia. He defeated Gnaeus Domitius Calvinus and a Roman army, and proceeded to overrun Pontos. Caesar however made haste to give battle himself, and at Zela in 47 BC Pharnakes was routed, escaping with only a small detachment of cavalry. Thus, this parricide would-be 'Great King of Kings' was soundly defeated by the might of Rome in the person of Julius Caesar, who reported this victory to the Senate with the famous phrase: 'veni, vidi, vici' (Plutarch, Caesar. 50; Suetonius, Iulius Caesar, 37).
Kyrenaika, Kyrene AV Stater. Circa 322-313 BC. Polianthes, magistrate. Quadriga trotting to right, driven by a three-quarter facing charioteer; KYPANAION behind / Zeus Ammon standing left, holding phiale over thymiaterion with his right hand and long sceptre with his left; ΠOΛIANΘEYΣ to right. BMC 117. Naville 85k (this coin). 8.66g, 20mm, 11h. A few minor marks, otherwise, about Extremely Fine. Very Rare. Ex LHS 95, 25 October 2005, lot 757; Ex L. Naville and H. Vogel collections, Hess 194, 25 March 1929, 482.
Loading...-
209236 item(s)/page