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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;TIF, post: 2008085, member: 56859&quot;][ATTACH=full]361205[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>This wonderful coin was inexplicably unloved in a recent auction.&nbsp; Who in their right mind <b>wouldn&#039;t</b> want a coin that features a quadriga of<i> hippocamps</i>?&nbsp; With <i>Poseidon</i>?&nbsp; It may not be fleur de coin but good luck finding one in better condition!</p><p><br /></p><p>Unsurprisingly given the devices, this coin is from a land renowned for seafaring.&nbsp; Berytos (now Beirut) was positioned in the center of Phoenicia&#039;s coastal territory. I recently posted another coin from Phoenicia (<a href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/ancients-a-coin-from-the-purple-people.250752/#post-1974106" class="internalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://www.cointalk.com/threads/ancients-a-coin-from-the-purple-people.250752/#post-1974106">Byblos dishekel</a>) so I won&#039;t recap that history in this thread.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;m unsure of the date of issue.&nbsp; It was struck in the first century BC, perhaps mid, perhaps 27/28.&nbsp; If you have any information pointing to a historically correct attribution, please let me know.&nbsp; I will continue to research the coin.&nbsp; Many important political changes occurred in that time frame and it would be nice to know more about the political climate at the time of this coin&#039;s issue.&nbsp; Was it struck while Pompey the Great was using Berytos as a naval base?&nbsp; Was it struck around the time of the Battle of Actium?&nbsp; Some time in between?&nbsp; Whatever the circumstance, the coin appears to be a statement of the city&#039;s naval power and prosperity.</p><p><br /></p><p><b>PHOENICIA, Berytos </b></p><p><b>1st century BCE</b></p><p>Æ19.5, 5.9 gm</p><p>Obv: Turreted head of Tyche right</p><p>Rev: Poseidon standing left in quadriga drawn by four hippocamps</p><p>Ref: SNG Copenhagen 83</p><p><br /></p><p>Post your coins which show unusual modes of transportation:&nbsp; flying snakes, bigas and quads of elephants, stags, goats, snakes, centaurs, lions, tigers, and bears.&nbsp; Oh my![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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