High relief ancient coins

Hello all,

I won this Athens tetradrachm with a relatively low bid, probably because it's lost quite a bit of weight due to corrosion or cleaning. It weighs 16.53g, about 96% of the theoretical weight of 17.2g.

It arrived in the mail yesterday and I was immediately struck by the high relief of Athena on the obverse. It's really not obvious from photographs. I've never seen such high relief coins before and I find it very appealing.

Does anybody have high relief ancient coins to share?

 

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This is another with very high relief, but I do not have a side image. Maybe later I will try to take one.

 

Are you new to ancients? If not and you continue to collect them, you'll find many have high relief.

I don't have any side images to share

 

Sorry I posted separately but I had to search for the side view shots. I
Like @Jwt708 said, there are many very thick, high relief ancient coins, and I have others. I just haven't taken side images of them. In fact, I just received a tet today, which I haven't photographed, and which is very high relief.

 

Great new addition @RichardT

I need to take more oblique photos in order to show the relief on some of mine. Below is one I took of my Kushan Soter Megas example.

The Great Savior Needs No Name… He Still Has One Though

Kushan Empire
Vima Takto, AD 78-110
AE Unit, Unkown mint, struck ca. AD 78-110
Dia.: 21.2 mm
Wt.: 8.2 g
Obv.: Bust right, 12 rays above, holding object. 3 pronged tamga in left field
Rev.: Horseman right, holding whip. 3 pronged tamga in right field
Ex Severus Alexander Collection

 

Yes, some ancients have some sweet relief....

 

Thanks for your replies all. I've been collecting Roman coins for some time, but I am pretty new to collecting Greek coinage. It looks like Greek coinage has very impressive relief.

Again, it's not obvious from typical seller photos so I was very pleasantly surprised.

 

The high relief Greek coins are lovely. Here is an AR stater from Istros, Thrace.

 

Nice!

It doesn't show in the pic, but this FH unusually high relief on the reverse.

 

My owl Tetradrachm.

 

Ptolemy II, Ptolemaic Kingdom
AR tetradrachm
Obv: Diademed head of Ptolemy I right, wearing aegis
Rev: ΠTOΛEMAIOY BAΣIΛEΩΣ, eagle standing left on thunderbolt, monogram in left field, shield in front of eagle
Mint: Alexandria
Date: 285-246 BC
Ref: Svoronos 574

 

Here are 2 of my highest relief coins- both are tetradrachms of Alexander the Great.
Just took the shots now. That Lysimachos tet is crazy from the side, almost half a face )

Lysimachos obverse



Lysimachos edge profile



Alexander Obverse



Alexander Profile

 

The high relief of many ancient coins-- Greek in particular-- makes them look more like miniature sculptures than coins .

Aegina staters have dramatic relief:



ISLANDS OFF ATTICA, Aegina
456/45-431 BCE
AR stater; 20mm, 12.32 g
Obv: land tortoise, head in profile, with segmented shell
Rev: large square incuse with skew pattern
Ref: SNG Delepierre 1774ff; BMC Taf. 24.11




Here's a nice side shot of a coin I haven't otherwise posted (writeup still pending... hoping to have time to do it soon-ish):

 

Following on from TIF's turtle, here's mine:

 

OK I had to try this in paint!
If only I had photoshop....

 

I like how TIF put it best: miniature sculptures. And the Aegina turtles in this thread are truly stunning. Small wonder they cost so much!

Thanks all for sharing your high relief coins. Looks like it's yet another collecting area to consider.