Ptolemy II tetradrachm

Another recent addition I was able to score is this Ptolemy II tetradrachm. Not sure about the plastic though....




Ptolemy II, 285/4-246 BC PTOLEMAIC KINGDOM
AR Tetradrachm 14.09 g.
NGC Grade
Ch XF Strike: 4/5 Surface: 2/5

obv. Diademed bust right of Ptolemy Soter wearing aegis around neck
rev. ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑIΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ, Eagle standing left on thunderbolt, wings closed, in left field TYP monogram above club

Ref:Sv.644, SNG Cop 482-483, BMC.-, Meydancikkale 4206-4353, Noeske 84.

 

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Sweet grab, love the eagle.

The eagle want's to soar, Free it!

 

Beautiful coin. Gotta hold that baby in hand!

 

Nicet TET RG...snap some more pics of that thing when you get it out!

 

Wonderful eagle on the reverse.

 

Freeedooom!!!

 

Oh, wow, @randygeki , nice snare! Great toning... super job!!! That Tet is GREAT! Yeah, let's scream Freedom! But you already know that... however, we WILL be checking from time to time... time to perform some meat-ball surgery on that plastic tomb...

My Ptolemy I:


Egypt Ptolemy I Soter Tet Delta bankers marks

Then I "drop" to an AE Ptolemy II:


Egypt Ptolemy II 285-274 BC AE Obol 20mm 6.7g Alex III Eagle Tbolt Plain SV 601

 

Congrats Randy, great score !

Here's mine:

 

Nice @randygeki

 

here's mine,
Egypt, Ptolemy II Philadelphos 285-246 BCE AR tetradrachm, 13.87 grams, 29mm Alexandria mint. Obv: Diademed head of Ptolemy I, banker marks
Rev:Eagle standing left on thunderbolt, ST, KI, AX monograms on left. Svoronos 378

 

Nice Randy. No Ptolemaic silver in my hoard yet, but it's on the list. Complicated series that was minted essentially unchanged for almost 300 years.

Per Edward T. Newell's booklet I've been reading titled Standard Ptolemaic Silver the date codes appeared in the upper right hand field in the 20th (K) year of PII's reign. That would make yours date between 285-265ish but I see most Sv. 644s cite a date range c. 285-261/0 BC

Here are the relevant PII Newell pgs:

 

Nice one Randy!

I'm still not sure if this is Ptolemy I or II

 

Thanks all, and great coins!
Here's some more of my Ptolemaic coinage:

Excellent! Thank you.

I'm the furthest from being an expert but look like yours has the 'TYP' monogram on the reverse, like mine. So maybe Ptolemy II. I don't know if Ptolemy I coins have that monogram or not though. Maybe someone else does?

 

Nice pickup, Randy! You're going to crack it out, I assume?

Dating Ptolemaic coins-- or even assigning them to a particular emperor-- is difficult and attributions have changed many times. I haven't been collecting very long and yet have many Ptolemaic coins which have been reassigned since I bought them (and I haven't updated my website or database ). Keeping up with current research could be a full time job!

I don't see a K on Randy's coin. If present it should be in the right field of the reverse. Per Svoronos, the club with that monogram above indicates the coin was struck in Tyre circa 267 BCE, Svoronos 644. I do not know if subsequent scholarship has reassigned this coin.




Svoronos is online on Ed Waddell's site.

Yours is the same as Randy's-- Ptolemy II (unless scholarship has changed recently), with obverse depicting Ptolemy I; Svoronos 644.

 

Thanks! I'm still deciding when I'll bust it out.

 

I have always liked my worn Ptolemy II especially for its overdate ΛΔ / ΛΓ but especially because it came from a collector who passed long ago but got me interested in such coins when most people only saw it as low grade. Sure I would like to see the same die in EF but this exists and is what it is.

 

My humble addition...

 

Very nice Ptolemy II tet @randygeki I really like it. One day I would like to own a tet that nice. Until then I will have to make due with my ugly Ptolemy II.


There is a new book on Ptolemaic coins coming out in July by Catharine Lorber.

She is probably one of the world's foremost experts on Ptolemaic coins and has worked with the PtolemAE Project (www.ptolemybronze.com). At $200, Volume I is a little pricey for the non-specialist, but will be well worth the price if it is anything like the volumes she co-authored on Seleucid Coins.

 

I'm looking forward to the book and might have to bite the bullet and shell out the bucks.