A Nabataean lead token of considerable rarity.

John Anthony · Mar 15, 2013

First a quote about these coins from Hoover (footnotes and references to plates removed)...

The coinages of the Nabataeans have long been studied, and numerous collections have examples in silver and bronze. However, until recently Nabataean lead coins have been extremely rare: a single such coin, formerly in the Shraga Qedar collection, Afula, was published by Ya’akov Meshorer in 1975, and a second, not yet published, was discovered in the excavations at Mezad Rahel (Qasr ‘Ein Kharuf) in 1981. Numerous new examples that have appeared on the Israeli antiquities market are now greatly expanding our knowledge of this formerly rare series. The coins, which are reported to have come from a Jordanian source, appeared in two lots in the summer of 2001 and a further three lots in early 2002. Three other examples unrelated to the Jordanian pieces have also come to light on the American coin market.
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My piece belongs to Hoover Group L, featuring the laureate head of Zeus right on the obverse, and a bull charging left on the reverse with the Nabataean inscription NBT above. Hoover records only 10 known examples of the type, but there are probably a few more by now.

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Ancientnoob · Mar 15, 2013

Now thats phat! i haven't seen one of those yet. Sooo Greek Arabia thats really neat. Great Find Kudos!

John Anthony · Mar 15, 2013

Ancientnoob said: ↑

Now thats phat! i haven't seen one of those yet. Sooo Greek Arabia thats really neat. Great Find Kudos!
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Well now. That was not the reaction I was expecting for a dingy little obscure piece of lead, lol.

Ardatirion · Mar 15, 2013

A wonderful coin, extremely rare and exceptionally preserved. Lead coins are often very rough and corroded.

One question - on what grounds did you determine this is a "token?"

John Anthony · Mar 15, 2013

Coin or token is rather up to debate. I'll quote Hoover's excellent work on this coinage again, in which he makes a compelling argument to consider them something akin to tesserae...

Lead Coins or Lead Tokens?

One of the more vexing problems concerning the Nabataean lead issues, as with most
lead series of the ancient world, is the determination of their function within the economy.
When only one or two examples were known it was possible to dismiss them as Nabataean
test pieces for bronze coins that were never produced,60 but the existence of 61 specimens of
12 different types now makes this view untenable. Because lead was rarely a standard metal
for proper coinage in the ancient Mediterranean world, there are really only two possible
explanations for the Nabataean pieces. They should either be seen as emergency coins
struck in lead at a time when precious metal was unavailable for minting, or they should be
considered as tokens or tesserae redeemable for various goods or services.

Lead coins, thought to have been produced as stopgap replacements for regular silver and
copper coinage, are known from a variety of Near Eastern cities and kingdoms, particularly
in the late Hellenistic period. The lead series of Alexander Jannaeus is thought to have been
struck because of a copper shortage, although it has recently been argued that these were
really tokens rather than a substitute coinage.61 Similarly, as mentioned above, under the
Seleucids the types of the regular silver and bronze coinages of Antiochus III and Demetrius
III were struck in lead, apparently at times when, or in places where, the appropriate metals
were hard to come by.62 Lead replacement issues have also been identifi ed for the Ptolemaic
and Parthian kingdoms.63

It might be tempting to interpret the Nabataean lead pieces as emergency coins because
the end of Obodas III’s reign and the early years of Aretas IV saw fi nancial diffi culties
for the Nabataean kingdom exacerbated by the border confl icts with Herod the Great and
the magnifi cent gifts given to Augustus. However, it is unlikely that the lead issues were
produced as replacements for silver since Aretas IV issued a special series of copper coins
which explicitly indicate that they were used for this purpose. Certain bronze coins of his
tenth (AD 1/2) and eleventh (AD 2/3) years are marked in Nabataean with the names of the
silver denominations that they replace. Both silver ma’ah ( םעה כספ ) and silver half ( (חצ כספ
substitute denominations are known.64 These coins apparently began to fall out of use after
year sixteen (AD 7/8) when the silver shortage ended and Aretas IV resumed production of
a proper silver coinage.

Because it is clear that Aretas IV used bronze for his replacement coinage when silver was
scarce, and because the non-portrait types of the Nabataean lead issues, with the exception
of A1, are so completely unrelated to types used for the regular coinage, it seems most likely
that the lead pieces were produced as a kind of token analogous to the tesserae used to
distribute largesse at Rome and other cities of the Empire. According to the literary sources,
tesserae, given out by emperors on festive occasions, could be redeemed by their recipients
for gifts of foodstuffs or money and sometimes for luxury items like pearls or even an entire
apartment block.65 Lead tesserae were also produced by private establishments and clubs as
tokens redeemable for various goods and services.66

If our interpretation of the Nabataean lead pieces as tesserae is correct, they were probably
distributed by the king or his offi cials on important triumphal or religious occasions, much
as they were at Rome. The types, which emphasize victory and local deities, would tend to
corroborate this view.
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stevex6 · Mar 16, 2013

Nice pick-up, JA ...

=> a "lead" animal-coin!! (sweet)

Windchild · Mar 16, 2013

Very Cool!

Bing · Mar 16, 2013

Interesting thread.

John Anthony · Mar 16, 2013

Bing said: ↑

Interesting thread.
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I didn't expect this one to win any beauty contests, but the coin is actually in pretty good shape for its age and alloy. A lot of 35 of these was sold back in 2003, CNG 64, lot 476, and one or two trickle into the market every year. Here's a sample of the CNG lot...

Mostly they've been discovered in Jordanian archeological digs, in conditions that protected them from the elements. Any that might have been buried would have disintegrated long ago.

Windchild · Mar 16, 2013

I found a seller who has a bunch (~15) of Nabatean Lead Pieces in Stock

I've got 1 I'm looking at... any more information on the ones will a bull right, Laureate bust of King?

John Anthony · Mar 16, 2013

Windchild said: ↑

I found a seller who has a bunch (~15) of Nabatean Lead Pieces in Stock

I've got 1 I'm looking at... any more information on the ones will a bull right, Laureate bust of King?
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WC, here is Hoover's paper on the Nabataean lead coinage at the Royal Numismatic Society's site. It's a free, legal download...

http://www.royalnumismaticsociety.org/NC_Offprints/NC166/NC166_09_Hoover.pdf

Ardatirion · Mar 16, 2013

John, if you're interested in Hellenistic lead coinages, I have a few articles for you. I'll send you the info when I can get access and my bibliography again.

And if you read closely, the only reason these and other leaden issues are called tokens are because of a baseless assumption that the Greeks and Roman s didn't issue lead coinages. Don't hop aboard the circular reasoning merry go round.

Windchild · Mar 16, 2013

Can you send it to me too?

I love any reading, no matter what topic of the Ancient (specifically pre-500... I'm interested in some things after but most parts I am not)

John Anthony · Mar 16, 2013

Ardatirion said: ↑

John, if you're interested in Hellenistic lead coinages, I have a few articles for you. I'll send you the info when I can get access and my bibliography again.

And if you read closely, the only reason these and other leaden issues are called tokens are because of a baseless assumption that the Greeks and Roman s didn't issue lead coinages. Don't hop aboard the circular reasoning merry go round.
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Thanks Bill. I'm not so well-read on the matter that I have an opinion one way or another. I'd be very interested in reading those articles.

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A Nabataean lead token of considerable rarity.

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A Nabataean lead token of considerable rarity.

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

Guest User Guest

Ancientnoob Money Changer

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

Ardatirion Où est mon poisson

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

stevex6 Random Mayhem

Windchild Punic YN, Shahanshah

Bing Illegitimi non carborundum Supporter

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

Windchild Punic YN, Shahanshah

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

Ardatirion Où est mon poisson

Windchild Punic YN, Shahanshah

John Anthony Ultracrepidarian

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