AE 16 mm, 3.49 g, Unattributed, perhaps Cilician issue.
SC 568, HSC 265 (R3), reference: Shown at BritishMuseum in 1995 (this example may be the second known) Appear to be same dies as BM example as illustrated in SC 1 and HSC.
Update 26-06-10: CNG is selling another more worn example ex: J.S. Wagner in EA236:331 (closing 7 July), so this appears to increase the census to three now known, which makes it still a very rare coin but rating an R2 using AH's rarity indicators.
O: Laureate hd of Apollo r., with curly sideburn, no border visible.
R: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ (above) ANTIO[XOY] below, caps of the Dioscuri, no border visible.
R: AΘΕ, Owl stg r., hd facing, olive sprig and crescent behind all within incuse square.
Dealer’s notes: Near VF, numerous test cuts and a banker’s mark on obv cheek and on reverse. Earthen encrustation.
This is the kind of Athenian Tet I have always liked. One that shows its wear, and having traveled somewhat extensively. The banker’s marks on the obv and rev both appear to indicate that this coin had traveled in the east and it is likely that is where it was found.
AE 19 mm serratus, 5.788 g, perhaps Apamea on Orontes mint (cf. pp. 458-9 in SC II)
SC 2242.3j v. (UNLISTED CONTROL in SC), SNG Spaer 2366 (this example completes the control, which is incomplete in Spaer but is exactly 2366)
O: hd of young Dionysus r., wreathed with ivy, dotted border
R: BAΣΙΛΕΩΣ on r., AΛΕΞΑΝΔPOY on l., winged Tyche stg l., calathus on hd, holding ship’s tiller and cornucopiae. Controls Outer l (above) EK with small Δ over the E, below wreath.
This coin was Ex: Amphora/David Hendin and likely found in Israel as many of his Seleucid bronzes have been in the past. This was also likely sold via one of his numerous eBay auctions in the past rather than through his pricelist (at least pricelists going back to #87).
A collection of Hellenistic coins dating back to the era of Alexander the Great were found near Najm Castle in the Manbej area in Aleppo governorate (northern Syria ).
The coins were found by a local man as he was preparing his land for construction, uncovering a bronze box that contained around 250 coins. He promptly delivered the coins to the authorities who in turn delivered them to Aleppo Department of Archaeology and Museum.
Director of archaeological excavations at Aleppo Department of Archaeology and Museum Yousef Kanjo said the box contained two groups of silver Hellenistic coins: 137 tetra drachma (four drachmas) coins and 115 drachma coins.
One side of the tetra drachma coins depicts Alexander the Great, while the other side depicts the Greek god Zeus sitting on a throne with an eagle on his outstretched right arm. 34 of these coins bear the inscription "King Alexander" in Greek, while 81 coins bear the inscription "Alexander" and 22 coins bear "King Phillip."
The drachma coins bear the same images as the tetra drachma, with "Alexander" inscribed on 100 of them and "Philip" on 15 of them.
Muhi id-din Muhammad Aurangzeb Bahadur Alamgir I (1658-1707 CE)
AR Rupee, 24 mm 11.47 g , Khanbayat mint AH 1118 Regnal 51 (April 1706-March 1707)
KM 300.51
O: Aurangzeb ‘Alamgir (1118)
Shah
Zad chobadr munir
Sikka
Dar Jahan
R: Manus
Maymanat
Sannah 51 jalus
Duriba
khanbayat
Ex: Stephen Album Rare Coins item #807797
Ex William F. Spengler (1923-2005) Collection
Ex: William B. Warden Jr (1947-2000) Numismatist stock # 89006815
Ex Virgil M Brand (1862-1926) Collection
Likely sold by Spink 50 (6-7 Mar 1986)
With Brand’s own cabinet card (see below)
Virgil Brand a very successful brewer in Chicago, amassed an immense collection of over 300,000 coins...Reclusive in his habits, he would study the coins he loved so well in his apartment above the brewery, notating descriptions and prices paid in his volumes of ledgers. From before the turn of the century until his death in 1926, he added, on an average, about 10,000 coins each year, including many important coins of antiquity as well as of the United States, medieval times and of the world in general. (p. 123 of Bromberg I catalog, 1991)
Virgil Brand
Ex: William Theobald (1829-1908) Sale, 1901 (per Brand card) the sale was held by Sotheby, 15 July 1901, William Theobald of Budleigh Salterton; Oriental, 231 lots. thanks to Curtis Clay for providing this information. (cf. wikipedia entry for Wm. Theobald English Naturalist) According to Prof. T.V. Buttrey who was kind enough to provide the following information: "However on the title page the collection comprised 'Many fine and rare Specimens of the Durrani, Monguls of Delhi, Taimurids, Monguls of Hindustan, Rajas of Assam, White Huns, Kings of Arrakan, Khalsa Confederacy, Guptas, Indo-Scythians, Pathan Sultans of Hindustan, Pathans of Bengal, Bactrian, Sassanian, and other Dynasties.'"
Geological Survey of India in late 19th Century
Brand Cabinet Card illustrated below:
20110603
INDIA, MUGHAL, Shah Jahan, 1628-59, AR rupee (11.3g/26mm) 1039 AH year 2 month of Bahman (1630-1631 CE) Patna mint, K222.13
O: Shihab ed-din Muhammad Shah Jahan badshah ghazi sahib quiran sani R: Kalima / zarb patna sanah 2 ilahi mah bahman (minting of patna year 2 divine month Bahman).
AR Drachm, 18 mm, 4.21 g, Soli mint BCE 197-187
SC 1023.1, WSM 1283 (same dies), HSC 452a (R2), CSE 514 (this coin), CSE II, 230 (same dies)
cf. Houghton, A. "The Royal Seleucid Mint of Soli" NC 1989, page 16. This coin noted as #5 from Series I, Group A of which there are three examples listed in Drachm denomination. #4 appears to be CSE II, 230 now, #5 is as noted, and #6 is Newell's example at the ANS.
O: diad. hd in advanced middle age, diad ends falling straight behind. R: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ [A]NTIOXOY, Apollo slight drapery on r thigh, std l, on omphalos, testing arrow and resting l hand on grounded bow. controls on outer r and l.
O: radiate diad hd of king r., one diadem end flying up behind, the other falling forward over shoulder, dotted border.
R:ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ (curving) on r., ANTIOXOY (curving) on l. in Phoenician across upper field “L’Gebal” (of Gebal) in ex., “Qdsh” (the holy), six winged Kronos-El stg l., holding was-sceptre, dotted border.
GAZA CITY — The Hamas-run ministry of tourism and antiquities in Gaza on Monday announced the discovery of ancient artifacts near the Egyptian border town of Rafah.
"The most important of the findings are 1,300 antique silver coins, both large and small," said Mohammed al-Agha, tourism and antiquities minister in the Islamist-run government.
He said archaeologists had also uncovered a black basalt grinder, a coin with a cross etched on it, and the remains of walls and arches believed to have been built in 320 BC.
They also discovered a "mysterious" underground compartment with a blocked entrance that appeared to be a tomb, Agha said.
(for the remainder of the article, please check the link below)
The coins appear to be 4th cent. BCE Gazan copies of Athenian Owls from the photo provided....to be updated with additional postings....
Click the link to go to the CNG page to see a fuller write up regarding this text and to order it if you are interested. I received it a couple weeks ago and find it a good addition to the study particularly in rating the respective rarity (C, S, R1, R2, R3--cf. the June 2008 Celator article by Arthur Houghton and David Hendin if you are interested, though Houghton's portion of the article is reprinted in this text) of the issues described. Granted, this is a general study linked to SC numbers and therefore the text does not describe the rarity of a particular subtype for a common issue for example. There are a few typos such as the mix up of numbers for the bronzes of Timarchus, but overall these are just a distraction from the overall value of the book. A separate website with the catalog number linked value ranges for the described coins is an improvement over now dated catalogues such as Sear's GCV and promises to provide regular updates that should keep this text updated for the forseeable future. I did note that a couple values appear to be in error (specifically a bronze of Antiochus VI for example) but these can be easily corrected in future updates (#1054 in the catalogue =SC 2025 is listed as being $400-$600 in the lowest condition when it should likely be $40-$60 and $3000-$5000 in the best condition when that should likely be $300-$500).
O: Radiate and diademed hd of king r., one diadem tie falling forward over shoulder, dotted border.
R: [BAΣΙΛΕΩΣ/A]NTIOXOY in two lines above panther, [E]ΠΙΦANOYΣ/ [ΔI]ONYΣOY in two lines below, panther stg l., foreleg raised, head facing, broken spear in mouth.
Primary control above panther’s tail: ΣTA
Secondary control: palm branch
Planchet appears to have been broken in antiquity.
