you snooze you loose, watching European auctions from Texas

I enjoy watching on line auctions. I watched a couple this weekend and plan another early next week. I wanted a cast sextans that is a bit ruff, and not common. It went unsold. Unfortunately I logged into my computer a few minutes after 9 and the coin was lot 4. I snoozed a bit too long.

Central Italy, uncertain. AE Cast Sextans, c. 280-260 BC. Obv - Anchor; two pellets; Rev - Trident; Vecchi ICC 297

I was a bit more successful in the second auction. It started at 10 and I won the only lot I wanted. The coin is a fairly common Greek bronze, and is not in my collecting area. I have a friend who is collecting coins with rays and this one has some interesting ones in the countermark. I found lots of examples of the coin in acsearch. Two of them had similar countermarks!

Cilicia, Tarsos 164-27 BC. ÁE.
Head of Tyche right (another seller added a few words: Turreted, veiled and draped bust of Tyche right; c/m: radiate head of Helios right within circular incuse)
Monument of Sandan (another seller added a few words: TAPΣEΩN, Sandan standing right on horned, winged animal, within a pyramidal monument)
SNG France 1307-1338 var.
8.51 grams
21 mm

I do not have the Greek coin references listed in the coin's descriptions. Post anything you have about this coin. Are there any other countermarks on this coin series?
This is my first purchase from Themis. I like the scale they use on their coin pictures.

 

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I have so little knowledge about these kinds of coins that I just look at them for fun on CoinTalk, learning just a little as I go. That is a cool new acquisition. What online auctions do you usually watch? Sounds fun

 

That's a great-looking Tarsos countermark, rrdenarius - I like how it is centered on the face. I hope this is the start of a countermark obsession for you

I have two of them, shown below. They do seem to be fairly common for a countermark issue. When I got these I did some digging and found quite a few examples. There was nothing particularly specific about the countermark that I could find - who issued it and why. It is one of those things I need to go back to and see if some more information emerges. I would like to know more.

Here is the best one I have - it is kind of weird how the countermark is over the face, but doesn't obliterate it - two faces merged into one. Psychedelic!:



Cilicia, Tarsos Æ20
(c. 164-27 B.C.)
Bust of Tyche veiled & turreted right / TAPΣEΩN right, pyre of Sandan center, KA / M Γ /AP monograms left.
SNG BN 1336-7; SNG Levante 933-57 var.
Countermark: head of Helios right in 8mm circle.
(6.31 grams / 20 mm)

This one's kind of pitiful, but I never turn down a cheap countermark:



Cilicia, Tarsos Æ18
(c. 164-27 B.C.)
Bust of Tyche veiled & turreted right / TAPΣEΩN right, pyre of Sandan center, possible monograms left (worn).
SNG BN 1336-7; SNG Levante 933-57 var. (?)
Countermark: head of Helios right in 8mm circle.
(6.33 grams / 18 mm)

 

You might be able to buy the first coin mentioned in the post auction sale. Contact the auction company.

 

I picked up this one in the same sale, and the second in Themis 1. Here also is an article about the variety featuring Acheloios:
https://www.academia.edu/37588285/_...e_Numismatic_Confirmations_KOINON_I_2018_1-29

 

Two others from my collection:

 

Thanks for the link. I was not aware of this history.