LOT 2959
Pamphylia, Aspendos AR Stater. Circa 380/75-330/25 BC.
Two nude wrestlers, standing and grappling with each other; between them, BI / [ΕΣΤ]FΕΔΙΙ[ΥΣ], slinger standing to right, about to shoot from his sling; to right, triskeles running to left. Tekin Series 4; SNG BnF -; SNG von Aulock -. Near Very Fine. Toned. Small area of delamination on obverse.(10.85gr, 24mm, 12h.).
ProvenanceFrom the private collection of a Canadian gentleman living in Essex, UK, formed since the 1920s-circa 1990.
Property of an Essex lady until the the late 1990s; thence by descent.
From the private collection of an Essex gentleman since the late 1990s.
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AUCTIONS:
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Phoenicia. Byblos AR 1/16 Shekel. 4th century BC.
Estimate: £30 - 40 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £15
Galley to left, containing two hoplites with helmets and round shields; hippocamp to left below / Lion attacking bull to left. Cf. HGC 10, 139. 0.70gr, 10mm, 10h.
Near Very Fine.
Private collection, acquired 1980–1985. -
Kingdom of Macedon, Alexander III AE Unit. 336-323 BC. Uncertain mint in Macedon.
Sold for (Inc. bp): £234
Head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin / ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΥ, quiver-over-bow and club to right; Δ above, star below. Price 277 var. (club to left). 7.04gr, 20mm, 2h.
Near Extremely Fine. Very rare.
From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman. -
Thessaly, Pharsalos AR Drachm. Late 5th-mid 4th century BC. Signed by the engraver ΤΗΛΕΦΑΝΤΟΣ (Telephantos) and ΙΠ- (Ip-).
Estimate: £3,000 - 4,000 (‡+bp*)
Opening Bid: £1,600
Head of Athena to right, wearing crested Attic helmet with raised cheek pieces; behind neck, ΤΗ above ΙΠ (engravers' initials) in small lettering / Φ-Α-Ρ-Σ clockwise around Thessalian cavalryman riding horse prancing to right, wearing petasos, chlamys and chiton, and holding lagobolon over his right shoulder; in exergue, Τ (engraver's initial). Lavva 86 (O43/R51); BCD Thessaly I 1284 var. (TH in exergue); BCD Thessaly II 639 var. (no ΙΠ); HGC 4, 624. 5.95gr, 18mm, 9h.
Good Extremely Fine. Tiny cut on reverse. Attractive toning with golden iridescence around the devices. Sharply struck and surprisingly detailed.
From a Swiss collection, acquired prior to 2005. Ex Nomos AG, Auction 21, 21 November 2020, lot 145 (company's ticket included).
If the harmony and the aristocratic inner peace of the portraits are the first thing that catches our attention, it is the extremely detailed rendering of the figures, especially on the reverse, that makes the viewer cling more to their admiration for this coin. Each depiction of Athena’s head in these emissions of Pharsalos makes us believe that she has her own character and that no two are the same, even though they share the same characteristics. Athena in our coin looks like a tender girl with a serious but innocent look in her eyes. Her divine power, despite her young age, is not violent; it is simply inherent in the serenity of her gaze. On the other hand, the detailed rendering of the cavalryman’s and horse's face, the texture of his chlamys, the harmonious matching of muscles and joints in the horse's body, and even the pronounced veins in the horse's belly convince us of a talented engraver and a gifted artist.
