u/Sweaty-Lab-4777

I recently obtained an Azilises tetradrachm to reunite with his Azes peers. As often discussed in this forum, the relative chronology of Indo-Scythian kings is still a matter of debate as so little is known about them. What is known however, is that Scythians were among the first to field fully armored (which in Greek translates to kataphraktos) heavy cavalry as shock units in battles. This is something that was destined to have a long-lasting influence all through to the Parthian and Byzantine empires, and something they must have been very proud of since Indo-Scythian kings are depicted as such on their coins. There is more variation on the reverses. Here, Azilises chose a goddess who might be Tyche (equivalent of the Roman Fortuna), holding a lamp or some other light source and a palm. There are also group pictures with two Azes tets (upper and lower), where Athena is shown on the reverses.

Whitehead 319(i), Mitchiner 6/801d, Senior type 56.522T

Type : Tétradrachme bilingue

Date : c. 55-35 AC

Nom de l'atelier/ville : Taxila

Métal : argent

Diamètre : 26,5 mm

Axe des coins : 1 h.

Poids : 9,51 g.

Description avers : Le roi à cheval passant à droite, tenant une couronne de la main droite et un étendard de la main gauche ; devant le cheval, un monogramme.

Légende avers : BASILEWS BASILEWN MEGALOU// AZOU

Description revers : Nike debout à gauche tenant une couronne et une palme.

Titulature revers : LÉGENDE KHAROSHTHI .

Turkmenistan or Pakistan? Dimensions are 360 x 250 cm.

The numerous types issued by Seleukos I departed progressively from the iconography used on the ubiquitous Alexanders. Here, Herakles is still represented with the lion skin on the obverse, but on the reverse Alexander's name is now replaced by Seleukos'. A personal touch is also provided by another replacement: Zeus now holds a figure of Nike in his hand (nikephoros) instead of an eagle (aetophoros), foreshadowing the reverse found on the later panther skin type. This evolution between different types was quite complex, Oliver Hoover mentions that Zeus Aetophoros, Zeus Nikephoros and another iconic type displaying an elephant chariot circulated simultaneously in different regions of the vast Seleukid empire. My specimen has a quite rough surface in some places, but the flan is pleasingly large and the high-relief profile is quite impressive!

Seleukid kings. Seleukos I Nikator, 312-281 BC. Tetradrachm (silver,, 29 mm, 16,39 g, 12 h) Seleukeia in Pieria, circa 300. HGC 9, 16d. SC 29.1e and/or 29.2. Rough surfaces, otherwise very fine.

À handful of Greek silver. Collection start in September last year (eight months ago). Looking forward to the next part of the journey 🎉

I must say I am really happy with this representative and beautifully well-preserved example of Seleukos I’s Victory Coinage that he minted for a short time in Susa (only 26 dies according to Marest-Caffey, 2016), probably to commemorate his victory at the battle of Ipsos in 301 BC. Striking elements in the iconography used by Seleukos are the bull’s horns and ears, associated with panther spots decorating the Attic helmet and the animal skin tied around the neck. The recent reappraisals by Hoover (2002) and Marest-Caffey (2016) of the identity of the character pictured on the obverse converge on the representation of Seleukos himself rather than Alexander, using symbols resonating both with Greek/Macedonian and Persian audiences. The priority then was the consolidation and reorganization of the eastern provinces of the newly arisen Seleukid Empire. To quote Marest-Caffey, the type “testifies to the success of Seleukid policies in the early days of the empire”. Those were the days for the Seleukids…

 

ANCIENT GREECE. SELEUKID KINGDOM. Seleukos I 'Nikator'.
Silver Tetradrachm, circa 300-295 BC. Susa.
Obv: head of hero right (assimilating Seleukos, Alexander III 'the Great' of Macedon, and Dionysus), wearing helmet covered with panther skin and adorned with bull's ear and horns. Rev: BΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΣΕΛΕΥΚΟΥ, Nike standing right, crowning trophy; monograms between and in lower left field.

Good Extremely Fine; a portrait of wonderful style, certainly among the finer examples to come to auction in recent years.

Reference: SC-173.4; CSE-1023; ESMS-Tr.21 (A18/P- [unlisted rev. die]); HGC 9-20, Marest-Caffey group 1.4.
Die Axis: 4h.
Diameter: 26 mm.
Weight: 17.14 g.

Here is another tetradrachm from the rather little-known king Azes. This coin is of the KMW type (king mounted with whip) on the obverse and depicts Athena with a shield and an outstretched, protective arm on the reverse. The type is Whitehead 149. The last two pictures show it side-by-side with an Azes tetradrachm of a different type (Whitehead 127), which I posted earlier. Despite both being of similar weight (9,20-9,50 g) and showing the king and Athena, there are obvious iconographic differences and apparently an important variation in flan size. The KMW coin is narrower and thicker compared to the KMS one, but I am unsure whether this is always the case. The greek legend is partially illegible, but shows BA∑IΛEΩ∑ BA∑IΛEΩN MEΓAΛOY AZOY.

Tetradracma. Azes I (58-12 a.C.). A/ El rey a caballo a der., delante monograma. R/ Palas a der., delante y detrás monogramas. AR 9,47 g. 22,9 mm. EBC-/MBC+.

This is certainly one of the most popular and iconic type in Greek coinage. A not negligible advantage is also the possibility of finding coins in very good conditions at an affordable price. It is widely believed to represent on the reverse how Taras was rescued by his father Poseidon, who sent a dolphin to help him get back to land after he fell off the ship he was sailing in. I wonder who Taras’ mother was for him to have such limited swimming abilities while being the son of Poseidon, my guess is that she was not a creature from the sea…  When back on firm land, Taras founded a city on the spot bearing his name, which later became Tarentum and now Taranto in modern Apulia.

As explained in this article by Ursula Kampmann and despite Aristotle himself concluding that “Taras” on the city’s coinage was referring to the character represented rather than the minting city, there are reasons to believe that it is Phalanthos rather than Taras who is shown here. Phalanthos was the leader of the helots (εἵλωτες) in Sparta who revolted against their masters and were exiled as a result. Still led by him, they crossed the Ionian Sea and established a new city in Southern Italy, Taras, which could be the name of the river by which the city was founded. Taras would be the only colony ever founded by Sparta, and then in a very peculiar manner. In another story, Phalanthos is supposed to have traveled to Delphi to consult the oracle but was shipwrecked on his way back and rescued… by a dolphin.

Whoever the hero really is, this is a nice story in line with other similar wandering legends explaining the founding of cities in the Greek world.

Calabria. Tarentum. Nomos. 332-302 BC. Vlasto-654/8. Fischer-Bossert Group 75, 970. HN Italy-942. Hgc-1, 808 corr. Obv.: Nude youth, crowning himself, on horseback to right; below, SA above lonic capital. Rev.: Taras astride dolphin to left, holding serpent and whip; TAPAS behind, KON below. Ag. 7,82 g. Graffiti F on obverse. Almost XF/Choice VF.

A Corinthian pegasus from Ravel's Period V which Brice dates to 350-285 BC. The amount of extant Corinthian staters being too great, Brice used drachms which share all of the same letters and some of the symbols, but are far less numerous (3 000 vs. 20 000), to perform a die study (Brice 2024). He established a relative chronology of Period V, as well as a revised absolute chronology.

The funny thing is that staters with the Δ letter show up twice, as an early series and later towards the end of Period V. I am not sure which series my stater belongs to, but I guess the Helios control mark could tell us that although I can't find the information in Brice's publications?

I really like this stater because of its nice toning and its portrait of Athena. Although quite small in hand, I find it both elegant and delicate. Corinth (350-285 BC). 23 mm. 8.47g Purchased on Vcoins (Marc Vazsonyi).

I am so glad (and lucky) to be in possession of such an emblematic coinage, the first representation of a deified Alexander with both the horns of Ammon and the elephant headdress. Athena Alkidemos, the tutelary goddess of Pella, on the reverse to ascertain the Macedonian heritage. And the eagle on fulmen, the personal device of Ptolemy I. Catherine Lorber has narrowed quite convincingly the emission of this specific issue to c. 305, very close to the point of transition from the Attic to the reduced standard (15.70g).

PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy I Soter. As Satrap, 306-300 BC. AR Tetradrachm (15.59 g). Obverse die signed by the artist D. Alexandria mint. Struck in the name of Alexander III of Macedon, circa 310-305 BC. Diademed head of Alexander right, wearing elephant's skin; small Δ to right of elephant's ear / Athena Alkidemos advancing right; Helmet and eagle to right. CPE63, Svoronos 168. VF/XF.

Hi! I was really attracted by the profile of Ptolemy I on this coin from 143/142 BC, even though the quality of Ptolemaic coin emissions are supposed to decline over time. This coin is not found in Svoronos but has references 2127-30 in Julien Olivier's thesis from 2012 (in French). Olivier also ascertains that it was minted in Paphos and not in Alexandria: Alexandria coins from that time period also harbor the ΠA sign with the same reign year (RY 28), but have marked stylistic differences and correspond to Svoronos 1503.

The coin is also matching with a coin from the BNF in Paris:

https://gallica.bnf.fr/ark:/12148/btv1b8508906c

and with this sale (where the references indicated are wrong):

https://www.numisbids.com/sale/7744/lot/273

Ptolemaic Kingdom of Egypt, Ptolemy VIII Euergetes II (Physcon) AR Tetradrachm. Dated RY 28 (143/2 BC). Paphos mint. Diademed head of Ptolemy I to right, wearing aegis / BAΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ, eagle standing to left on thunderbolt, with wings closed; L KH (date) to left, ΠA to right. Svoronos -; CPE II 1468; SNG Berry 1498. 13.26gr, 25mm, 12h. Near Extremely Fine. Lustrous metal with an attractive old cabinet tone. Minor flan crack at 4h; edge chipped. Very rare example.