I love this Athena!

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Roman Collector, May 19, 2019.

  1. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    My Labrador retriever has the attitude that every toy is her favorite. I'm the same way about my coins -- fickle as a black Lab. This one's my favorite for today. I like it because of the Athena on the reverse. Despite the circulation wear (or weak strike?), she has a detailed and lovely face. I also like how some of the textured pattern of her aegis still remains. And how tiny and cute is her owl?

    The coin was struck with a variety of obverse and reverse dies and it's quite common. But it's a pleasant coin and I'm glad I picked it up at auction over the weekend.

    Post your coins of Mac and Di, of Athena, or anything you feel is relevant!

    Macrinus and Diadumenian Marcianopolis Athena.jpg
    Macrinus and Diadumenian, AD 217-218.
    Roman provincial Æ Pentassarion, 12.06 g, 26.5 mm, 6 h.
    Moesia Inferior, Marcianopolis, Legate Pontius Furius Pontianus, June/Aug 217-Nov/Dec 217.
    Obv: ΑΝΤ Κ ΟΠΕΛ CΕV ΜΑΚΡΕΙΝΟC Κ Μ ΟΠΕ ΑΝΤΩΝΕΙΝΟC, Confronted heads of Macrinus right, laureate, and Diadumenian left, bare.
    Rev: VΠ ΠΟΝΤΙΑΝΟV ΜΑΡΚΙΑΝΟΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ, Athena wearing helmet and aegis, standing left, holding owl and inverted spear; E in right field.
    Refs: AMNG I 734v.; Hristova & Jekov 6.24.4.7; Varbanov 1170a; BMC 30v.; Moushmov 537; Wiczay 2148v.

    Macrinus and Diadumenian Marcianopolis Athena close-up.jpg
     
    Last edited: May 25, 2019
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  3. Jwt708

    Jwt708 Well-Known Member

    Very cool tiny owl!
     
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  4. ValiantKnight

    ValiantKnight Well-Known Member

    Attica, Athens
    AR tetradrachm
    Obv: Helmeted head of Athena right
    Rev: Owl standing right, head facing, olive sprig to left, crescent behind, AΘE to right, all within incuse square
    Date: 454-404 BC
    Ref: SNG Copenhagen 31
    Size: 17.19g, 24mm

    [​IMG]
     
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  5. Jwt708

    Jwt708 Well-Known Member

    Here's a little owl...sadly it's not all on the flan:

    [​IMG]
    Thessalian League, 2nd-1st BC
    AE, trichalkon, 20mm, 5.3g; 12h
    Obv.: Laureate head of Apollo right
    Rev.: ΘΕΣΣ / ΛΩΝ; Athena Itonia striding right, hurling spear held in her right hand, shield on her left arm; ΘΡΑ in right field above, owl in left
     
  6. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    Here's an attractive Athena I haven't shown in a while. RC's Athena has an attractive face. Mine's, ahem... attributes... are further south :D.

    [​IMG]
    KINGS OF MACEDON, Antigonos II Gonatas
    277/6-239 BCE, struck after 270 BCE, Amphipolis mint
    AR tetradrachm, 31mm, 17.06 g
    Obv: head of Pan in center of Macedonian shield, lagobolon over shoulder; shield decorated with stars within crescents
    Rev: BASILEWS ANTIGONOU, Athena Alkidemos walking left, brandishing thunderbolt and shield; helmet left, EMP monogram right
    Ref: SNGCop 1200v, EMP (maybe); R. Martin, "A Third-Century B.C. Hoard from Thessaly at the ANS," ANSMN 26, 536 (same obv. die).
    ex Demetrios Armounta Collection
     
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  7. Alegandron

    Alegandron "ΤΩΙ ΚΡΑΤΙΣΤΩΙ..." ΜΕΓΑΣ ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΟΣ, June 323 BCE

    Nice job @Roman Collector ...

    Here is an Athena:

    Elaea-Aeolis AE10 1.4g 3rd C BCE Athena-Barley.JPG
    Elaea-Aeolis AE10 1.4g 3rd C BCE Athena-Barley


    And, an Owl:

    upload_2019-5-19_18-51-54.png
    Calabria Tarentum AR Drachm 18mm 3.1g 3rd C BCE Athena Corinthian Scylla OWL olive TAP ZOP HN Italy 975 Vlasto 1052
     
  8. Andres2

    Andres2 Well-Known Member

  9. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    I regret to announce that my Mac-Di Marcianopolis Athena is defective. She dropped her owl and opted to sacrifice from a patera over a lighted altar. I remember buying the coin because I liked the triple line legend under the busts.
    pn1600bb2318.jpg

    My favorite little owl coins (shown here too often) feature Minerva by Septimius Severus and Pescennius Niger. Both date to the time of their civil war which Severus won making his coins cheaper. Both of these denarii are equally rare unless I have missed some. Neither made RIC.
    Pescennius Niger Antioch
    rd0052nt3485.jpg

    Septimius Severus 'Emesa' mint
    rg2170bb1736.jpg

    The most common tiny owl coins I know are those of Domitian. I am surprised none have made this thread yet.
     
  10. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    Interesting coins, @dougsmit .
    I'm sure that @David Atherton and other Flavian fanatics will post theirs soon. :cat:
     
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  11. David Atherton

    David Atherton Flavian Fanatic

    You asked for it. LOL

    D183.jpg
    D328.jpg D343.jpg
    D576.jpg
    D686.jpg
    D730a.jpg
    D788.JPG

    I choose these eight to sort of showcase how the type changed (or not) over the reign. The quality control varied in the later issues.
     
  12. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    She's also got that weird M.C. Escher thing going on with her arms. Sometimes it looks like she's throwing the thunderbolt with her right hand and sometimes the left.
     
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  13. Justin Lee

    Justin Lee I learn by doing

    It's like the blue dress/brown dress debacle!

    Very nice Athena, RC!
     
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  14. Terence Cheesman

    Terence Cheesman Well-Known Member

    Syracuse 12 Litrai 214-212 B.C. HGC 1412 Obv Head of Athena Rv. Artemis stg. syracusest1.jpg
    Of course there is the one everyone sees all the time
    Stater in the name and types of Alexander III 323-318 B.C. Babylon Price 3691 alexanderav1.jpg
     
  15. Sallent

    Sallent Live long and prosper

    These are my Athena coins.....

    Attica Athena Owl Tet (1).jpg 9i9BRF4w3bWGnQ8x7pZEmS2zM6yjeK.jpg

    And my Minerva coins.....

    C. Vibius C.F. Pansa AR Denarius feat. Minerva.jpg Domitian Minerva denarius.jpg geta k.jpg
     
  16. randygeki

    randygeki Coin Collector

  17. Justin Lee

    Justin Lee I learn by doing

    Last edited: May 20, 2019
  18. randygeki

    randygeki Coin Collector

    Thanks.


    Macrinus, 11 April 217 - 8 June 218 A.D., Antioch, Syria

    Bronze provincial as, McAlee 736; Hunter III, 243 - 244; BMC Galatia p. 200, 403 ff. var (busts); SNG Cop 234 var (same), aF, Antioch (Antakya, Turkey) mint, weight 2.175g, maximum diameter 17.8mm, die axis 180o, obverse AYT KAI M O CE MAKPINOC CE, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Macrinus, from the front; reverse KAI M O ∆IA ANTΩNEINOC, bare-headed, draped and cuirassed bust of Diadumenian, seen from the front, S - C flanking across field; from the Butte College Foundation, ex Lindgren; very rare bust variant;
     
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  19. lordmarcovan

    lordmarcovan Eclectic & Eccentric Moderator

    Well, since you mentioned black Labs, here is old Max.

    (All pix from circa 2011.)

    [​IMG]


    Here is a coin I had sold, which was on the desk awaiting shipment.

    [​IMG]


    At some point during the night, Max had snouted the partially-unlatched front door open (you know "snouted" is a verb if you own a Labrador retriever).

    He crept in, snatched the package off the desk, and took it out to the front yard. My daughter found the shredded remnants on the front lawn when she went out to catch the school bus.

    Max had unconventional and rather inconvenient taste in chewy toys.

    [​IMG]


    Brand new slab, not so brand new anymore.

    [​IMG]


    I'm sure you will all applaud Max for his idea of what to do with a slab, but I had some 'splainin' to do. It all worked out in the end, though.

    Except for poor Max. He decided to chase a log truck one day. He caught it.
     
  20. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    LOL!!! Max knows what to do with slabbed ancients!!!
     
  21. Roman Collector

    Roman Collector Well-Known Member

    The OP came with this old German-language collector's tag hand-written on cream-colored card stock. Does it look familiar to anyone? Anyone know whose collection this may have come from? 20190522_210642.jpg
     
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