Cilicia or other areas of the eastern Mediterranean
AR Obols
Identifier UNC-AR-03
| Denomination: | AR Obol |
| Period: | c. 4th century BC |
| Mint: | uncertain mint in Cilicia or a nearby area |
Detail
| Weight: | 0.63 g |
| Diameter: | 10–10 mm |
| Obverse: | Bull butting right on exergual line; above, uncertain letter; dotted border. |
| Reverse: | Male figure standing left on exergual line; in left field, uncertain object or letter; in right field, uncertain letters. |
| Die axis: | -165º |
| References: | Unpublished in the standard references, but a number of similar specimens on the market, see below. |
| Remarks: | |
| A number of specimens of these obols are known, but their attribution is uncertain. They may originate from Cilicia, but also from other areas of the eastern Mediterranean. The legends on the obverse and reverse are probably written in the Aramaic alphabet. However, their interpretation is unclear, as they are rather carelessly executed and some letters are probably shown retrograde. It is probably a local production of a minor city. We can distinguish three variants of the specimens known so far: | |
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| The specimen in this collection belongs to variant 2. Samples of other specimens without claim to completeness (the first number indicates the variant): | |
| 1.1 | Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 397 (17 May 2017), Lot 194 (acsearch.info URL). 0.62 g. |
| 1.2 | Savoca Coins, 4th Blue Auction (29 December 2017), Lot 513 (acsearch.info URL). 0.59 g. Ex Savoca Coins, Live Online Auction 10 (16 October 2016), Lot 337 (acsearch.info URL). |
| 1.3 | Saint Paul Antiques, Auction 16 (31 March 2018), Lot 65 (acsearch.info URL). 0.60 g. |
| 1.4 | Nomos AG, Obolos Web Auction 20 (3 October 2021), Lot 817 (acsearch.info URL). 0.56 g. |
| 1.5 | Nomos AG, Obolos Web Auction 21 (2 January 2022), Lot 517 (acsearch.info URL). 0.67 g. |
| 1.6 | Biga Numismatics, Online Auction 22 (2 September 2023), Lot 176 (biddr.com URL). 0.67 g. |
| 2.1 | Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 495 (7 July 2021), Lot 231 (acsearch.info URL). 0.65 g. Ex Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 462 (26 February 2020), Lot 183 (acsearch.info URL). |
| 2.2 | Leu Numismatik, Web Auction 19 (26 February 2022), Lot 1589 (acsearch.info URL). 0.65 g. |
| 3.1 | Numismatik Naumann, Auction 38 (6 December 2015), Lot 198 (acsearch.info URL). 0.55 g. |
| 3.2 | Roma Numismatics Limited, E-Sale 25 (27 February 2016), Lot 76 (acsearch.info URL). 0.67 g. |
| 3.3 | Savoca Coins, Live Online Auction 7 (28 February 2016), Lot 355 (acsearch.info URL). 0.73 g. |
| 3.4 | Savoca Coins, Live Online Auction 15 (28 May 2017), Lot 308 (acsearch.info URL). 0.65 g. |
| 3.5 | Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 398 (31 May 2017), Lot 299 (acsearch.info URL). 0.67 g. |
| 3.6 | Numismatik Naumann, Auction 77 (5 May 2019), Lot 107 (acsearch.info URL). 0.62 g. |
| 3.7 | Themis Numismatics, Auction 7 (27 June 2020), Lot 262 (acsearch.info URL). 0.60 g. |
| 3.8 | Aquila Numismatics (Fa. Online-Münzhandel), Auction 4 (19-20 August 2022), Lot 202 (acsearch.info URL). 0.73 g. |
| 3.9 | Aquila Numismatics (Fa. Online-Münzhandel), Auction 7 (4 December 2022), Lot 360 (acsearch.info URL). 0.70 g. |
| 3.10 | Victoria Numismatics UG, Auction 4 (20 December 2022), Lot 105 (biddr.com URL). 0.68 g. |
| 3.11 | Savoca Coins, 156th Silver Auction (19 February 2023), Lot 113 (acsearch.info URL). 0.58 g. |
| The average weight including the coin in this collection is 0.64 g with a standard deviation of 0.05 g. | |
AR Tetartemorions
Identifier UNC-AR-02
| Denomination: | AR Tetartemorion |
| Period: | c. 1st half of the 4th century BC |
| Mint: | uncertain mint in Cilicia or a nearby area |
Detail
| Weight: | 0.19 g |
| Diameter: | 5–5 mm |
| Obverse: | Lion’s head facing. |
| Reverse: | Bearded head of Pan or satyr right, with horns and long ears; incuse circle. |
| Die axis: | 110º |
| References: | Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 277, 8; SNG Levante, 241 |
| Remarks: | |
| According to Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 275, this coin type appeared on the market together with other previously unknown types of silver hemiobols and tetartemoria from Cilicia and nearby areas in 1984 and 1985. Its mintage can be dated to the 4th century BC based on the reverse circular incuse, most likely to the first half of this century. These silver fractions were probably intended for the small daily transactions of the local population and the mint was probably located in Cilicia, but other area of southern Asia Minor, such as Caria, cannot be ruled out (ibid, p. 281). The head of Pan or satyr is found on obols from Nagidos, but the artistic representation is different (see Coin Catalogue, Nagidos, Types 4.10, 4.12, 5.1 and 5.2). | |
| Other specimens without claim to completeness: | |
| 1 | Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 277, 8a. Weight uknown. |
| 2 | Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 277, 8b. 0.18 g. |
| 3 | Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 277, 8c. 0.20 g. |
| 4 | Troxell & Kagan 1989, p. 277, 8d. 0.16 g. |
| 5 | SNG Levante, 241. 0.17 g. |
| 6 | Classical Numismatic Group, Electronic Auction 286, 5 September 2012, lot 151 (acsearch.info URL). 0.15 g (5 mm, 4 h). |
| 7 | Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger, Auction 284, 26 September 2012, lot 2456 (acsearch.info URL). 0.19 g. |
| 8 | Fritz Rudolf Künker GmbH & Co. KG, Auction 216, 8 October 2012, lot 469 (acsearch.info URL). 0.15 g. |
| 9 | Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger, Auction 287, 7 Frebruary 2013, lot 2002 (acsearch.info URL). 0.18 g. |
| 10 | Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger, Auction 306, 12 Frebruary 2015, lot 1869 (acsearch.info URL). 0.15 g. Ex Gerhard Hirsch Nachfolger, Auction 296, 13 Frebruary 2014, lot 1901 (acsearch.info URL). |
| 11 | Bucephalus Numismatic GmbH, Auction 21 (23 June 2023), Lot 232 (acsearch.info URL). 0.17 g (5.4 mm). |
| 12 | Shanna Schmidt Numismatics Inc, Fixed Price List (accessed 18 January 2024). 0.19 g (6 mm, 3 h). |
| The average weight including the coin in this collection is 0.17 g with a standard deviation of 0.02 g. | |
19 September 2021 – 18 January 2024