Featured Mausoleum

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by Valentinian, Feb 20, 2019.

  1. Valentinian

    Valentinian Well-Known Member

    CariaMaussollos1915.jpg
    Drachm. 14 mm. 3.70 grams.
    Persian Satrap of Caria, Mausolos, 373-353 BC.
    Apollo 3/4 facing right. Zeus Labraundos standing right with labrys (double ax) and spear, wreath in left field.
    Sear Greek II 4956. SNG Danish V Caria 591-593. SNG von Aulock 2361-2365. SNG Finland Keckman I 276. SNG Turkey I Kayhan 874-879.
    Minted at Halikarnassos, Caria, now Bodrum on the southwestern coast of modern Turkey.

    We spell his name "Mausolos," but he spelled it with a double S and double L: MAYΣΣΩΛΛO
    Take a look at the legend: Maussollo.jpg


    From Wikipedia under "Mausoleum": "The word derives from the Mausoleum at Halicarnassus (near modern-day Bodrum in Turkey), the grave of King Mausolus, the Persian satrap of Caria, whose large tomb was one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World."

    The tomb was a massive structure 145 feet high, possibly still extant in the 12th century but in ruins by the 15th and since then the building materials have been recycled and reliefs removed, so there is very little remaining. The wikipedia article shows the site and pictures of many of the extant sculptural elements now in various museums.

    This coin is a drachm. There are tetradrachms of the same design. If anyone has one, we'd love to see it.

    Post anything related!
     
    Last edited: Feb 20, 2019
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  3. ominus1

    ominus1 Well-Known Member

    very kool coin and info! :)
     
  4. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    A coin of Mausolos seems like a must-have for any generalist ancient coin collector, mainly because of the tie-in to the "Seven Wonders of the Ancient World".

    I don't have one yet :(.
     
  5. Alegandron

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

    @Valentinian ! That is a GREAT coin! Nice capture. Thanks for the write-up.
     
  6. Orfew

    Orfew Draco dormiens nunquam titillandus

    I agree with everyone else, that is a great coin.
     
  7. Justin Lee

    Justin Lee I learn by doing

    I didn't realize the connection. Very cool. I don't have a tetradrachm, and no longer have this drachm, but was its caretaker for a short time.
    CollageMaker_20180917_202124760.jpg
     
    Ryro, Jwt708, Marsyas Mike and 9 others like this.
  8. pprp

    pprp Well-Known Member

    @Valentinian: very nice! I love Apollo's high relief portrait in this series, hope I get one some day...For the time being I only have one coin of Mausolos' father hecatomn.jpg
     
    Ryro, Jwt708, Jay GT4 and 7 others like this.
  9. Terence Cheesman

    Terence Cheesman Well-Known Member

    I have a tetradrachm of Maussolos. I picked it up at my first NYINC in January 2017 from Triton XX. I believe it might be a later issue as it has an ME monogram. Non the less I really love the portrait of Apollo on this coin. I think the die was cut by a master engraver. maussollos3.jpg
     
  10. dougsmit

    dougsmit Member

    The face shows what I might call a sadness. Any coin portrait that suggests any emotion is indeed quite special. Triton XX was a very good sale to me (bad to the bank account) as well.
     
    Gavin Richardson likes this.
  11. Ken Dorney

    Ken Dorney Yea, I'm Cool That Way...

    I was at the British Museum this week where they have some of the remnants of the mausoleum and snapped this photo of the man himself:

    239A3662-AB5D-4AA3-9753-E30C3A667350.jpeg
     
  12. Terence Cheesman

    Terence Cheesman Well-Known Member

    Thank you Doug. Whenever I examine a coin like this one of the things that always impresses me is the skill exhibited by these artists. Despite the limitations imposed on them by their technology, they can produce coins which are in many ways superior to what we have today. It is something I try to convey to students whenever I do a seminar with them.
     
  13. TypeCoin971793

    TypeCoin971793 Just a random guy on the internet

    I did not realize that Mausolos minted coins. Yours is a very nice example. I’m going to have to find me one.

    My pics from the British museum. I found it to be a very memorable exhibition. :)

    5C2E7E55-0D14-41A5-93B2-AE3849311668.jpeg 44C8C585-4715-465A-BA08-AAFCBF29A3A1.jpeg D4B4DDBB-B0A5-4D28-835B-7DA88F946944.jpeg
     
  14. Jim Dale

    Jim Dale Well-Known Member

    I really enjoyed all the information and pictures. I had two vacations in Europe when my father was stationed in Germany and France. My first vacation was in 1955. We visited all around Germany, Switzerland, Italy, the Netherlands, France, and other countries that I don't remember because I was only 8. There were many things that were still untouched by the Nazis and other stupid people. I loved visiting Roman with the coliseum, the Apian Way (I'm not great at spelling, so bear with me.), the catacombs. When I was in the catacombs, we were told not to stick our hands in the burial "holes". At 8, everything was fair game. We went to Pisa and were able to go to the top of the "Bell Tower of Pisa", otherwise called the Leaning Tower of Pisa. There was a walkway on the inside and on the outside. Again, the guide told us not to go on the outside walkway, well, being 8 ….. Naples and the coast. The beaches were beautiful, especially with the nude beaches, but since I was 8, I couldn't appreciate it as much. Anyway, it was a great trip. Germany was still in ruins from all of the bombings. In France, we went to the top of the Eiffel Tower.
    In 1964-1965, we lived in a small town in France and I had to go to school in Verdun and lived in a dormitory. We left home on a military bus on Sunday night and came home on Friday night. My buddy and I snuck out a lot to go to the hot spots. I was 17 and Charlie was 15. It was the first time I drank alcohol... and the last. Anyway, I graduated in 1965 and had to move to Germany because DeGaulle hated Americans and cancelled all our leases. He believed that He won WW II. It was good to get away from the "Frogs". I bagged groceries and other jobs to raise $1,000 so I could travel while we were stationed in Germany. You couldn't tell that there had ever been a war in Germany for most of the country. France looked like it was still at war. I hitchhiked all over Europe then. It was a lot different the second time. The people all over (except France) were gracious and helped a lot. They had built little "hotels" for youth tourists like me. They had beds with mattresses you slept in your sleeping bag on them. Bathrooms with showers and sinks you could wash your clothes and hang them on the lines they had set up. Cost was equivalent of 50 cents a night.
    Anyway, I had all sorts of coins. I had coins and bills that the Nazis had made and others. When my ex kicked me out, I didn't have time to get all of my stuff and she threw all my baseball cards, comics, and coins away. (I think she sold them.) So it is back to square one, starting in 1996.
    Thanks for all your information.
     
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