LOT 2999
Thrace, Apollonia Pontika AR Drachm. Circa 470-435 BC.
Facing Gorgoneion with tongue protruding, serpents around / Upright anchor; in field, crayfish to left and A to right. SNG Copenhagen 452; SNG BM Black Sea 157; SNG Bulgaria Russe 2, 120-168; HGC 3.2, 1323. Good Very Fine.(3.16gr, 14mm, 6h.).
ProvenanceEx German art market, 2000s.
Acquired from an EU collector living in London.
From the collection of a Surrey, UK, gentleman.
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AUCTIONS:
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Pontos, Alias or Aliada AE 18mm. Circa 1st century BC.
Sold for (Inc. bp): £338
Laureate head of Zeus to right / ΑΛΙΑΔΕΩΝ, eagle standing to right on thunderbolt, head to left. For another example cf. Leu Numismatik AG, Web Auction 24, 1280 (attributed to Dia of Bithynia); otherwise unpublished. 6.60gr, 18mm, 12h.
Very Fine. Unique issue of an unrecorded city of Pontos.
Acquired on the European coin market. Property of a Kent, UK, gentleman.
This is not the only case where a coin may be the sole evidence for identifying and preserving the name of an unknown ancient city. The same applies to our coin, which, based on the typology and style of similar types from the regions of Bithynia and Pontus in the late 2nd and 1st centuries B.C., leads us to the possible identification of an unknown city in Pontus named Alias or Aliada (perhaps close to the Halys River in central Minor Asia). We hope that this coin will serve as a reason for further research on the subject. -
Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, Ptolemy II Philadelphos AE Obol. Circa 260s BC. Alexandria mint.
Sold for (Inc. bp): £26
Laureate head of Zeus to right / ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ [ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ], eagle with wings spread standing to left on thunderbolt; to left, Galatian shield between two monograms; Λ between legs; c/m: incuse trident. CPE B190; Svoronos 581; SNG Copenhagen 129. 14.17gr, 25mm, 1h.
Near Very Fine.
Property of a Cambridgeshire, UK, gentleman. -
Dodekanese Islands, Astypalaia AE 14mm. Circa 2nd-1st centuries BC.
Sold for (Inc. bp): £59
Head of Perseus to right, wearing Phrygian cap / A-C, warrior (Perseus?) advancing to right, holding harpa(?) and shield. Unpublished type. 2.59gr, 14mm, 12h.
Near Very Fine. Unpublished and possibly unique.
Acquired on the European coin market. Property of a Kent, UK, gentleman.
A new unrecorded type of the coinage of Astypalaia. Similar tiny bronze coins of Aspendos bear also A-C legend and depict an upright figure. However, the fact that this figure is not a slinger but a warrior and the resemblance of the head to that of Perseus of Astypalaian bronzes (cf. HGC 6, 1279), make us therefore attribute this coin to this island. Ιt is uncertain who exactly the figure represents, since several gods were worshipped on the island, as we learn from inscriptions that the ancient city contained many temples.
