Crete, Knossos, c. 300-270 BC, Æ13, Svoronos, Numismatique 77, no. 93; B.M Cameron Plate 49, 27

Crete, Knossos, c. 300-270 BC, Æ13, Svoronos, Numismatique 77, no. 93; B.M Cameron Plate 49, 27 (1.96 g, 13 mm)

Probably the most famous legend of Crete is that of the Minotaur, and the Labyrinth that served as its lair. Several ancient coin types from Knossos depict the Labyrinth.

According to the myth, Minos, the king of Crete, once boasted that he could receive any favour from the gods. To prove his claim, he prayed to the sea god Poseidon, who granted him a magnificent bull. The bull was meant to be sacrificed to Poseidon, but Minos liked it so much that he kept it for himself and sacrificed a different animal to the sea god. This invoked Poseidon’s wrath, who caused Monos’ queen Pasiphae to because enamoured with the bull. Their union gave birth to the Minotaur, a half-man, half-bull monster.

To avoid angering Poseidon further, Minos kept the Minotaur alive, instructing his architect Daedalus to build an impassable maze to house the creature: the famous Labyrinth.

The Athenians, who had lost a war to the Minoans, had to pay an annual tribute of seven maidens and seven youths every year to Crete, all of whom would be devoured by the Minotaur. Theseus, son of the Athenian king, volunteered to go as one of the youth. Through the aid of Minos’s daughter Ariadne, who had given him a spool of red thread, Theseus managed to find his way through the Labyrinth and slew the Minotaur.

Obverse: Head of Apollo left; indistinct countermark
Reverse: Square Labyrinth; (below KV\Ω)

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

This is one of the main coin types that got me excited about collecting Greeks early on.
Big coingrats on yours! I wonder if there are other examples with counter marks that might help us narrow down what yours is?
Anyways, here's mine still pretty fresh from his trip to David Sear:

CRETE, KNOSSOS.
AE (2.54 g), approx. 200-67 BC BC: head of the bearded Zeus to the right. Back: Labyrinth between ΚΝΩΣΙ / ΩΝ. Svoronos, Crete 116.2.00, Lindgren. Nice. Ex BAC Numismatics 2/9/20201

 

I hope to snag one of these labyrinth types at some point. Nice coin and write up @Amit Vyas !

Here is my only coin from Crete. One of my favorites from this year.

Greek Stater of Gortyna: Europa and Bull


Crete, Gortyna
AR stater, struck ca. 330-270 BC
Dia.: 27.5 mm
Wt.: 11.58 g
Obv.: Europa seated right in lefeless plane-tree, holding branches of tree with both hands
Rev.: Bull standing right, head turned back, scratching muzzle with hoof.
Ex Karl Kress (before 1969)

 

...kool....any Crete items are great...and your(and @Ryro 's) labyrinth coins are 'O-wow!' coins...

 

Great coin and the myth is a nice story too. I also want to get one of these one day.

 

Congratulations on the score, @Amit Vyas.

For a brief period, when the rival cities of Gortyna and Knossos were in alliance, they jointly issued a series that was a Cretan myth value pack - Europa and the bull on one side, and the Labyrinth on the other.

CRETE, Knossos-Gortyna alliance
AE19. 5.83g, 19.4mm. Knossos-Gortyna alliance issue, struck circa 220 BC. Svoronos 122; SNG Copenhagen 378; Lindgren II 1721. O: Europa, holding veil, seated left on bull leaping left; radiating lines in periphery, two dolphins below. R: [Κ-Ν-Ω-ΣΙ-ΩΝ], Labyrinth; star above.

 

Very nice examples.

Collecting ancient coins with references to mythology is the closest I have come to a “thematic” collection. (My collecting interests are generally all over the place. ).