Ancients => Mmmm, Lesbos

Yah, sorry ... I'm sure a few of you horn-dogs were expecting something a bit more racy, eh?

Well, for the folks that did click this thread to see a sweet coin from Lesbos, I'll proceed ...

Today I managed to score myself a pretty sweet golden-ish treat!!

I love the cool Silenus obverse and as most of you know, I find it very difficult to stay away from cool animal examples!!

LESBOS, Mytilene. EL Hekte – Sixth Stater
Circa 454-428/7 BC
Diameter: 10 mm
Width: 2.44 grams
Obverse: Diademed head of SEILENOS (Silenus) right
Reverse: Two ram heads butting each other; palmette above; all in incuse square
Reference: Bodenstedt Em. 37; HGC 6, 963
Other: 6h … toned
From the Kallman Collection





Please feel free to post any, or all of your relevant examples ... ummm, like your Lesbos coins, your Silenus examples and/or your satyr examples, your cool ram coins, or whatever floats your boat!

Cheers

 

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I'll start by posting my only other Lesbos goldie ... Ram & Bull

LESBOS, Mytilene. EL Hekte – Sixth Stater
Circa 478-455 BC
Diameter: 10 mm
Weight: 2.48 grams
Obverse: Ram’s head right
Reverse: Incuse bull’s head right
Reference: Bodenstedt Em. 27; HGC 6, 954

 

Man, I thought you were staying away from goats/rams.

Excellent coin little brother. I have nothing from Lesbos.

 

Thanks, Bing (you and your rules, eh?) ...

Here is a statue of good ol' Silenus ...

=> Lookin' good, my friend! (*hic*)

Abode King of Nysa
Symbol Wine, grapes, kantharos, thyrsos,wineskin, panther, donkey
Consort Hermaphroditos
Parents Pan, or Hermes and Gaea
Children foster father of Dionysus, Pholos

=> best tutor "ever"

 

Some very cool coins there Steve.

 

The absolute ONLY Ram that I have!


Nektanebo II AE15, 361-343 BC
Pharaonic kings of Egypt. Nektanebo II (361-343 BC). AE15 (3.24 g).
Rev. Ram leaping left, head right.
Rev. Scales.
Weiser 1 (Nektanebo II); Butcher 11 (uncertain northern Syrian mint).

Raised sheep as a kid, and even had sheep on the farm when I lived in the UK. However, the only sheep/ram coin that I have!)

 

Atta-boy, Gandalf => thanks for being the first coin-friend to post one of their cool coins! (you rock)

 

That is awesome stevex6! Very nice pre-revolt example from around the Peloponnesian War. Great history in that little piece of electrum.

I, on the other hand, was not so fortunate in my coin acquisitions today. Got outbid at the last minute on a pair of beauties I've been eying for weeks... oh well! Congrats again on the sweet new coin!

 

Well, if nobody else wants to go, then I'll post another sweet satyr example (can't get enough of those horny lil' rascals, eh?) ... yup, they're always up to no good!

Thasos, AR Archaic Stater. Satyr & Struggling Nymph
Islands off Thrace, Thasos
c.525 - 463 BC
Diameter: 21.5 mm
Weight: 8.60 grams
Obverse: Satyr carrying off a struggling nymph, who raises her arm in protest
Reverse: Quadrapartite incuse square
Reference: SNG Cop 1010
Other: Nice metal with good facial detail. A classic archaic Greek type
(NOTE: David Sear stated circa 460 BC ... yes, I sent this baby to his ranch)

 

Cool Silenos/double ram combo! Your coin year is starting out great.

No Lesbos here, but a couple of rough ram heads...

Single ram from Aegina.


Double ram from Kebren.

 

Awesome ... thanks for the sweet examples, Z-Bro

Oh, and thanks for the coin-compliment as well (yes, I'm lovin' 2017 .. .so far)

 

Ummm, I have to take-off for an hour or so (shovel the driveway) ... but "please" continue to post your examples

Thanks, gang

 

LESBOS, Mytilene
EL Heckte - (Pigasus)
521-478 B.C.
2.55 grams, 10 mm
Obv: Winged boar facing right,
Rev: Head of Roaring Lion right
Grade: Fine with decent
centering. Incuse roaring lion is
well preserved (inverse relief) &
obverse boar’s head is worn.
Other: From Eye Appealing 4/2015
ex Heritage 2014

 

Another ram for ya.

TROAS KEBREN
AR Obol
OBVERSE: Archaic head of Apollo left
REVERSE: Ram'S head left within an incuse square
Struck at Troas, Kebren Circa 450 BC
.56g, 7mm
Rosen 534; Traité pl. xxxix, 25, SNG Ashmolean 1086
ex. Aegean Numismaics

 

Great coins, fellas ... thanks for posting

=> here is a cool ram from another area ...

Ionia, Klazomenai. Æ19
Mid-late 4th century B.C.
Diameter: 19 mm
Weight: 4.63 grams
Obverse: Bust of Athena facing slightly right, wearing triple-crested Attic helmet
Reverse: KLAΖOME/NIΩN in two lines above, ram walking right; in right field, trophy
Reference: SNG Munich 484; SNG Copenhagen 86
Other: 5 h … Mottled red, tan and green patina



=> please keep your cool examples comin' ...

 

Nice ram/ goat/ Lesbo coin. Don't have any of those types though.

 

I have one of those.
Actually it is one of my last two purchases of 2016 that arrived late last week.

 

Nice nab, Steve-O!

Okie dokie

My first Silenus was on a Corinth stater, which was also my first "good" coin (ie, not from a crummy "uncleaned" lot of slugs. I felt guilty for spending money on a coin. In my family, collectible coins are lucky finds from pocket change but the odds of finding an ancient coin in US pocket change were a tad slim . I thought it would be okay to buy just one coin. Yeah. One coin. That was the plan . The story of its acquisition is here.

CORINTHIA, Corinth
345-307 BCE
AR stater, 8.65 gm
Obv Pegasus flying left, qoppa below
Rev: helmeted head of Athena left wearing necklace; head of Silenus behind
Ref: Ravel 1046. Calciati 408. Scarce variety.
from Heritage Auctions, June 2013
This scarce variety was chosen to represent Corinth staters, #23 in Harlan J. Berk's book, "100 Greatest Ancient Coins".

Another Silenus beckoned, this one with a creepy/evil facing head. Finding an example with a clear face (not too smushed, not too obscured by the undertype on these often overstruck coins) was difficult and I got lucky with this one.

MACEDON, under Roman rule
D. Junius Silanus Manlianus, praetor
142-141 BCE
AE, 20 x 22 mm, 9.5 gm
Obv: Facing mask of Silenus, wearing ivy wreath
Rev: MAKE ΔONΩN legend In two lines; D above; all within ivy wreath
Ref: SNG Copenhagen 1324

A year or two ago I bid on and failed to win a cool electrum hekte in which the person on the obverse was wearing a mask of Silenus pushed back on his head. If you turned the coin 90 degrees counterclockwise you could see it clearly. A couple more came to market after that and I nabbed the worst one I've seen. It's good enough though and the price was more palatable.

IONIA, Phokaia
EL hekte, 11 mm, 2.5 gm
c. 478-387BCE
Obv: head of young male left, wearing Silenos mask on top of head; to right, small seal downward
Rev: quadripartite incuse square.
Ref: Bodenstedt Em. 70; SNG von Aulock –; Boston MFA –; BMC 43


Last year I picked up a very nice EL Pigasus from Lesbos:

LESBOS, Mytilene
521-478 BCE
EL hekte, 10.5 mm, 2.6 gm
Obv: forepart of winged boar right
Rev: incuse head of lion left; rectangular punch behind
Ref: Bodenstedt Em. 10; HGC 6, 935; SNG von Aulock –; Boston MFA 1678; BMC –
I have a thing for these winged pigs and am slowly trying to buy at least one from each ancient city which issued coins with winged pigs, whether as a main device or a control mark or secondary device.

 

Those are super sweet electrum coins @stevex6! Centered strike and the bust of Silenus is BA! I acquired these last year and they are my first from Lesbos.


Lesbos, Mytilene. AE20, ca AD 250-268
Mytilene, Lesbos. AE20, ca AD 250-268, time of Valerian to Gallienus. 2.4gm. Head of Zeus Ammon right with horn of Ammon / MUTILH-NAIWN, bearded herm of Dionysos facing, on prow, bunch of grapes at lower left. BMC 184


Lesbos, Mytilene. Antoninus Pius AE18
Obv: ΑVΤ ΑΙ ΑΔΡΙΑ ΑΝΤΩΝƐΙΝ[ΟС] / Laureate head of Antoninus Pius, r.
Rev: ΜVΤΙΛΗΝΑΙΩΝ / female figure (Tyche?) standing, facing, head, l., holding patera and transverse sceptre
RPC IV, 2627

 

No EL or Lesbos here unfortunately. Coin show Friday,