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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;David Atherton, post: 7830304, member: 82616&quot;]Ever since [USER=56859]@TIF[/USER] showed her example of this stunning type from Alexandria and coined the term &#039;snake cowboy&#039; I&#039;ve wanted one. <a href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/so-these-exist-snake-cowboys.314032/" class="internalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/so-these-exist-snake-cowboys.314032/">https://www.cointalk.com/threads/so-these-exist-snake-cowboys.314032/</a> A long sought after personal grail/white whale coin of mine.</p><p><br /></p><p>The recent Naville 67 auction not only had an example ... it&#039;s also a Dattari-Savio plate coin! I just had to have it!</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1345396[/ATTACH]</p><p><b>Domitian</b></p><p>Æ Diobol, 6.38g</p><p>Alexandria mint, 90-91 AD</p><p>Obv: ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙϹΑΡ ΔΟΜΙΤ ϹƐΒ ΓƐΡΜ; Head of Domitian, laureate, r.</p><p>Rev: LΙ; Serpent on back of horse, r.</p><p>RPC 2584. Emmett 277.10. Dattari-Savio 6801 (this coin).</p><p>Ex Naville 67, 1 August 2021, lot 188.</p><p><br /></p><p>The Alexandrian mint under Domitian around regnal year 10 or 11 experienced a &#039;dramatic improvement in style&#039; and the &#039;adoption of a wide range of new types&#039; (Milne). One of those new types features an Agathadaemon serpent (the &#039;Good Spirit&#039; of grain fields and vineyards) riding a horse. The &#039;Good Spirit&#039; was venerated in both Greek and Roman religions, depicted as a serpent on Roman shrines and lararia and honoured as an omen of good luck among the Greeks. The Agathadaemon serpent&#039;s most developed form flourished in Roman Egypt where it became an exalted deity, far beyond the status of a mere household god. Emmett says of this unusual type &#039;The horse represents the changing of the seasons, and the serpent represents rebirth and regeneration of the crops upon which Egyptian life and prosperity depended.&#039; Domitian&#039;s regnal year 10/11 was the first appearance of this incredible reverse - truly one of the more memorable types from the Roman world!</p><p><br /></p><p>The Dattari pencil rubbings have a lot to be desired. It&#039;s almost imperative to have the coins in hand!</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1345395[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>An interesting back story about Giovanni Dattari and his impressive collection.</p><p><a href="https://www.academia.edu/37026327/Giovanni_Dattari_and_His_Fabled_Collection_of_Alexandrian_Coins" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.academia.edu/37026327/Giovanni_Dattari_and_His_Fabled_Collection_of_Alexandrian_Coins" rel="nofollow">https://www.academia.edu/37026327/Giovanni_Dattari_and_His_Fabled_Collection_of_Alexandrian_Coins</a></p><p><br /></p><p>Feel free to share your numismatic snakes, horses, or plate coins.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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