Ancients: Lions

Just trying to keep you honest....

 

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Actually when Doug started this thread early today I couldn't wait to see what you posted....at least there was no underpants. stevex6

 

I'm late to this great thread!

@dougsmit: of course I love your Egyptian Commodus/lion (and @Valentinian's Marcus Aurelius). The exergual lion on the Aurelian was unexpected and cool, and now I want one too . The Leo I Lion is also one I wouldn't say no to

@IdesOfMarch01: what can we say about that fantastic Hadrian aureus? What a majestic coin

@Alegandron: that Babylon stater is so cool!

@ancientnut: such a great strike and wonderful preservation of that Velia

@Bing and @rrdenarius I am very envious of your Volteius lion bigas. One of these days...
@ancientone, that Phrygian Philip I lion biga is fantastic despite the hole

@Carausius, that Republican double litra is such a notable coin and fantastic lion! The stye of the lion reminds me of the Carthage Libyan revolt shekels, although those were struck a few decades later.

@Quant.Geek, that is the best Seljuks I've seen! Thanks for the translations. I'm going to copy that for mine

...

I collected Pigasi (coin geek slang for winged boars) so this type was a must-have. The roaring lion was icing on the cake.

LESBOS, Mytilene
521-478 BCE
EL hekte, 10.5 mm, 2.6 gm
Obv: forepart of winged boar right
Rev: incuse head of lion left; rectangular punch behind
Ref: Bodenstedt Em. 10; HGC 6, 935; SNG von Aulock –; Boston MFA 1678; BMC –

The next coin was acquired due to a ridiculous rationalization. My mom is a Scorpio (she likes that astrological stuff) and I thought I would give it to her. Riiiiiight. Like she'd care about an ancient coin? Like she'd even be able to see this teensy tiny thing? I simply loved the coin and used these excuses to bid beyond the planned amount

CARIA, Mylasa
450-400 BCE
AR hemiobol, 7 x 9 mm, 0.5 gm
Obv: facing forepart of lion
Rev: scorpion within incuse square
Ref: SNG von Aulock 7803

I was thrilled to buy one of the purported "first coins in history":

KINGS OF LYDIA, temp. Ardys - Alyattes
630-564 BCE
Electrum trite, 4.8 gm, 13.4 mm. Sardes mint.
Obv: head of roaring lion right, sun with four rays on forehead
Rev: two incuse square punches
Ref: Weidauer Group XV, 64; BMC 2

What the next one lacks in quality it makes up for in length of pedigree (searched out by @Ardatirion, a former owner)

THESSALY, The Oitaioi
167-146 BC.
AR Hemidrachm (15mm, 2.30 g, 1h)
Herakleia Trachinia mint
Obv: Lion’s head left, spear in its jaws
Rev: OITAI downward to right, ΩN downward to left, Herakles standing facing, holding club in both hands
Ref: Valassiadis 9; BCD Thessaly II 494 (same obverse die)
Private sale, Bill Dalzell (Ardatirion), March 2015
Ex BCD Collection (Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 290), lot 57
Ex Peus 384 (2 November 2005), lot 199
Ex Vinchon (20 May 1959), lot 483
Ex M. Ratto 11 (16 May 1935), lot 239
Ex R. Ratto (4 April 1927), lot 1023
Ex Naville-Ars Classica V (18 June 1923), lot 1764

One of my earliest individual ancient coin purchases:
LUCANIA, Velia
305-290 BCE
AR didrachm, 17.5 mm, 7.3 gm
Obv: Head of Athena right, wearing crested helmet, decorated with griffin; at left, A
Rev: YEΛHTΩN; lion standing on exergual line; above dolphin between I and Φ
Ref: SNG ANS 1375-6

Another relatively early purchase, from eBay (stupid to buy from eBay as a newbie ancient coin collector!!). I have worried about its authenticity since these coins are widely faked, but its style and fabric suggest authentic:

Thrace, Chersonesos
400-350 BC
AR hemidrachm, 13mm, 2.3gm
Obv: forepart of a lion right, head reverted
Rev: quadripartite; incuse; dot AΓ (ligate) and pentagram in opposing depressions
Ref: (I don't have a reference for this reverse combination)

The next coin shows what a bad influence coin forums can be. There was some ooh-ing and aah-ing over the type on a coin forum and this coin was in the same auction as another coin I was targeting, and I didn't want my main target to travel alone so...

SELJUKS OF RUM, Ghiyath al-Din Kay Khusraw II bin Kay Qubadh
Konya mint, CE 1241/2 (AH 639)
Silver Dirhem
Obv: lion advancing right; facing sun and star above, two stars below
Rev: legend across field
Ref: Broome 243G; Izmirlier 403; Album 1218
formerly slabbed

Can I count this? There is a lioness on the reverse, albeit small and indistinct

Septimius Severus
Rome, CE 206
AR denarius, 3.41 gm, 20 mm, 12h
Obv: SEVERVS PIVS AVG, laureate head right
Rev: LAETITIA TEMPORVM, the spina of the Circus Maximus decorated as a ship facing left, with the turning posts at its prow and stern, a sail mounted on the central obelisk, and the spina's other monuments visible in between; above the ship, four quadrigas racing left; below, seven animals: an ostrich at left and a bear at right; between them a lion and a lioness chasing a wild ass and a panther attacking a bison
Ref: RIC 274; BMC 343.
ex Colosseo Collection

 

It is getting harder to remember others that have not been shown several times so I'll dip to maybe lions. This denarius shows an encounter between a man and either a lion or giant hound depending on who you read. The moneyer's father defeated the Gauls under Bituitus who had employed hounds of war but the beast shown here does look more like a lion. Seaby in Roman Silver Coins 1967 edition says hound but the 1978 edition says lion. Perhaps one of our RR fans will discuss this???
Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus


Thanks to all who participated.

 

Crawford calls it a lion, and CNG's catalogers do the same.

From Crawford, who has a footnote specifying that it is not a hound:

Victory in biga r., holding reins in l. hand and whip in r. hand; above, ROMA; below, man fighting lion*; in exergue, CN·DOM. Line border.
Reverse dies: [89].

* Not hound, contra Babelon and Sydenham (see M. H. Crawford and R. Thomsen in M. Thompson, The Agrinion Hoard, 125); the type thus in no way refers to the exploits of Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus, Cos. 122, against King Bituitus (for dogs in battle see R. M. Cook, Festschrift Rumpf, 38).

However, there must be more recent scholarship on the issue because CNG (whose catalogers keep abreast of changes) attributes the coin to Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus while Crawford says it is someone else. From Crawford:

Since this issue and no. 285 are separated by only a decade, it is difcfi ult to regard both moneyers as Domitii Ahenobarbi in the same line of descent. This moneyer is perhaps a Cn. Domitius Calvinus or a Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus from a collateral branch of the family; for second-century Calvini note the commander in Liguria (Frontinus, Strat. iii, 2, 1 with A. E. Douglas, Brutus, p. 187), for collateral Aheno-barbi note the Cn. Domitius Ahenobarbus of Livy xlii, 28, 13 (an oppido adulescens in 172 he can hardly be the Cos. 162; I owe this point to H. B. Mattingly) and the L. Domitius Cn.f. (Ahenobarbus) in the Senatus consultum de agro Pergameno.

For the wild-beast fight on the reverse see W. Kubitschek, NZ 1913, 228; the fight and the com-ear together seem to refer to the games and distributions of produce offered to the Roman people by an Aedile as a step to higher office (see P· 729).

Maybe @Carthago or @Volodya can offer a more educated opinion on these matters.

 

That's a little disturbing...

 

Now I'm confused.

 

Long long ago I had some thoughts on this issue, either on the mostly-forgotten Moneta-L Yahoo list or the completely forgotten Numism-L. Honestly I don't remember what I said then and these days I'm inclined to agree with Crawford without comment. The only reason I recall this at all is that my post concluded with a not-bad pun:

Let lion dogs lie.

 

@IdesOfMarch01 I have no words - your Africa Lion is great!!!
Here is my "hunting lions pride" All hunters and victime are from EL hektes Mytilene.

 

As far as the actual topic of the thread goes, I suppose a lion-skin enclosed a lion once upon a time:

 

Wonderful posts!!

Of course, I forgot a couple but I'll just post this drachm from Massalia, Gaul (130-125 BC) since it has the most complete 'Lion' on the reverse....with an Artemis obverse.

 

Thanks for the compliment.

I've always marveled at the artistry on these small EL hektes, and more than once have been tempted to start collecting them. I'm finding that temptation harder and harder to resist. Your pride of lions is outstanding.

 

This is one of the coolest mythological beasts you can find on ancient (or even modern) coins. Probably next to your chimaera, one of your best.

 

My most recent lion, a Rhegium tetradrachm:

 

WOW!!!

So many fantastic posts!!!

 

Doug showed one of the most famous zoo-series lions--the one minted for the saecular games of the 1000th anniversary of Rome in 248 AD under Philip. Here is another one:


Philip I (244-249). 22-20 mm. 4.41 grams. 6:00
SAECVLARES AVGG, I below (for the first officina)
Sear, volume 3, 8956. RIC 12, page 70. Struck 247 or 248.

(In case you think coin prices always go up, I bought this one in 1988 in an auction and I'm sure I could find the same quality now for the same price or less.)

 

The Goddess of Syria, Dea Syria, had a lion as a companion, much like the Carthaginian goddess posted by @Ajax:


28 mm. 14.09 grams. 12:00.
ΘEAC CVPIAC IEPO-ΠOΛITΩN
Dea Syria, of Hieropolis
Philip I (244-249) struck for Hieropolis, Syria. I say "for" Hieropolis (IEPO-ΠOΛITΩN) 2:30-3:30 and continued in the exergue) rather than "at" Hieropolis because it was probably struck at Antioch (Butcher, Coinage in Roman Syria, page 453. His type 64a.)
Sear Greek Imperial 4144 for Philip II (all legends are the same for Philip I and II, only the portrait makes any distinction, and they can be hard to distinguish).
Lindgren and Kovacs 1925-6.
SNG Copenhagen Syria 63 "Hieropolis-Bambyce" (64 is Philip II-look at the two portraits to see how similar coins of Philip I and II can be.)

 

Lovely coin, Valentinian. I had a Celator article about Atargatis/Dea Syria and her connection to a parodic moment in Apulieus's Golden Ass (aka Metamorphoses). Below is an excerpt. The article can be read here: https://dl.dropboxusercontent.com/u/23980399/Celator Essay on Apuleius Richardson.pdf

“Perhaps due to religious syncretism involving Atargatis and Cybele, Antonine and Severan coinage often depicted the Great Mother goddess Cybele similarly seated, holding a tympanum with a lion at her feet. It is this association between Atargatis and her lions that is parodied most cleverly in [Apuleius’s] Metamorphoses. Instead of being borne in majesty by the noble lion, the cult statue of Atargatis is carried on the back of an ass. Numismatic reverse types offer insight into the joke since many coins depict Atargatis being carried on a lion’s back. The earliest such coin is a didrachm of Manbog, the pre-Hellenistic Syrian name for Hierapolis, likely struck sometime in the fourth century B.C. Later Roman provincial coins of Caracalla, Severus Alexander, Philip I, and Philip II would continue this iconographical tradition, depicting Atargatis riding a lion and holding a scepter. Similar Severan reverse types feature Cybele (or her North African equivalent “Dea Caelestis”) also riding a lion. Although these issues are slightly later than the probable composition date of the Metamorphoses, they testify to an iconographical tradition that likely informs the Apuleius text..."

 

I just read the article of @Gavin Richardson (link above) about Apulieus's Golden Ass (aka Metamorphoses) and Atargatis, the goddess whose image rides on a lion. It is excellent and fascinating. The coins with goddess and lion are more interesting when you know more of the story.

 

Sorry I'm tardy to this thread. There are oodles of nice lions already posted!

This guy is mostly lion (although his DNA may be a little bit twisted):

SIKYONIA, Sikyon
AR Stater
335-330 BC
11.94 grams, 23.2 mm
Obv: Chimera advancing left, paw raised, wreath above, ΣΕ below.
Rev: Dove flying left, I left, all within olive wreath.
Grade: a gVF nicely toned coin.
Other: Sikyon mint. BCD Peloponnesos 219, Traité III 776, BCD Peloponnesos pg 40, 56. SNG Cop 48 var (N instead of I). Ex CNG auction 312 lot 88 originating from a 1930’s collection.

This guy is quite chunky:

BABALONIA, Babylon
AR Stater (or Dishekel)
328-321 B.C.
16.08 grams, 22 mm x 5.5 mm thick
Obv: Ba’al seated left holding scepter
Rev: Lion walking left, control mark
Г above.
Grade: good Fine to a Very Fine
nicely toned & centered.
Other:Good silver 5.5 mm thick. Anonymous mintage of Eastern Alexandrine empire under the successors of Mazaeus (Stamenes 328-323 B.C., Archon 323-321 B.C.) See BMC.34, BMC.184/36. Babylonian stater coin sometimes called a tetradrachm according to the Attic standard due to its 16 gram weight. Ex Pegasi auction #19 lot 181 November 18, 2008. From private sale January 11, 2014.