My sister is considering bidding on this coin and asked me for advice. I had to admit to her I've'n't the foggiest what it is or what it's worth. Can't even be sure it's legit. Love looking at Greek coins, especially the silver and gold, but really never bothered to study them. Unlike Roman coins, there isn't (to my knowledge) and easy clues to follow beyond just looking at page after page of coins to hopefully find a similar one. There has to be a science to learning the ways, no? Anyway, would appreciate your help with this one! Ps. Does that say something like Philandros? Rasiel
ΦIΛIΠ - ΠOY (Philip-poy), Philip II father of Alexander "the Great", but looks very suspect to me as not an expert in Philip. Edit : definitely fake Published in the IAPN BOC Vol 14, No. 2 in 1989 - example 14
More likely, PHILIPPOU, genitive singular of Phillip of Macedonia meaning (coin or tetradrachma) of Phillip. These were issued during the reign of King Phillip, father of Alexander the Great. They were issued in large numbers and several Celtic tribes made imitations of them for some 200 years after his death. The coin appears to be well struck and hardly circulated. If it proved to be legit it would be worth more than I could pay for it. I, and most posters, would probably say that this sort of thing, whether it is genuine or not, is not something that can be known for sure just from its image. I would want to know more about the seller, its weight and most importantly what it looks and feels like in hand. For the kind of money this coin would fetch on the market I probably would not purchase it without it's being certified as authentic. Maybe I am too cautious, but I already have enough coins in my black cabinet (fakes) to add any more additional ones. If it turns out that it is not genuine it may be listed in the Forum Ancient Coin as a known copy. Please let us know what you find out.
Learning the Greek alphabet helps. Also useful for Roman Provincial coins. Buy a book on ancient Greek coins; it won't take long to learn to recognize certain types associated with particular cities or regions or empires (like the Ptolemies and Seleucids). Don't buy anything on Ebay!
ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΥ = FILIPPOU It appears to be an example of this type... KINGS of MACEDON. Philip II. 359-336 BC. AR Tetradrachm. Pella mint. Struck circa 342/1-337/6 BC. O: Laureate head of Zeus right R: Youth, holding palm frond, on horseback right; thunderbolt below, N in exergue. As for authenticity? I'm with @Sulla80 . Looking at other examples of the type in comparison, the coin looks suspect to me. Enough so, that I wouldn't be comfortable in considering it. The flan seems too uniform in my eye. The portrait looks off. The area where the hind quarters meets the body of the horse is pronounced/raised, whereas it is recessed/indented on other coins. My gut is telling me 'electrotype', or pressed from a modern counterfeit dye, but I am no expert, nor do I consider myself as one. EDIT: I see that @Sulla80 successfully sleuthed the answer
Thanks for pointing me in the right direction! The site is https://www.liveauctioneers.com/item/91816873_ancient-greek-silver-tetradrachm-148-bc Never heard of them (and evidently for good reason) Rasiel
Here's a big bronze(?) fake in my collection (knowingly acquired as such) that is similar. I suspect this -- and the one your sister is interested in -- fall into the "tourist fake" category.
View attachment 1197760 Something very fishy about this site - have watched a few coins on there:e.g. this denarius which sold for $2400 (not including buyers fees and shipping). Let me know if anyone wants a nicer one for the same price - and I won't even charge you buyer's fees.
If you like this replica you can buy here one as "Museum Quality Reproduction Coins" for about 55 Euro https://www.etsy.com/de/listing/580...ch_query=tetradrachm&ref=shop_items_search_11 https://www.ebay.de/itm/Philip-II-K...390558?hash=item4b62475a5e:g:qZEAAOSwk1hchA-1
here is the real deal Holyfield (via AJ and TIF): https://www.tifcollection.com/current-favorite-greeks?lightbox=image_q54 the genuine lifetime examples with thunderbolts I've seen always feature a horse with fine style (see link above). later (esp posthumous) examples feature horses with cartoonish features (remember reading this observation in the preface of Berk's "100 greatest ancient coins.")