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<p>[QUOTE="David Atherton, post: 7392949, member: 82616"]I have known of this coin for over 6 years. It has resided in CGB's online store all that time, with me occasionally checking in to see if it was still available. I believe the piece was overlooked by other collectors. Last week I finally pulled the trigger and purchased it ... I'm not sure why I waited so long nor why it went unsold! It's such a landmark coin and will be a cornerstone in the provincial section of my collection.</p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1286380[/ATTACH]</p><p><b>Vespasian</b></p><p>AR Tetradrachm, 11.99g</p><p>Antioch mint, 70-71 AD</p><p>Obv: ΑΥΤΟΚ ΚΑΙΣ ΣΕΒΑ ΟΥΕΣΠΑΣΙΑΝΟΥ, LΓ (in right field); Head of Vespasian, laureate, r.</p><p>Rev: ΕΤΟΥΣ Γ ΙΕΡΟΥ; Eagle standing, l., on club; in field, palm branch</p><p>RPC 1949 (0 spec.). Prieur 115 (this coin).</p><p>Acquired from CGB.fr, April 2021. Ex Banias Hoard.</p><p><br /></p><p>A most remarkable regnal year 3 Antiochene hybrid tetradrachm struck with an obverse die intended for an Alexandrian tetradrachm. The regnal year on the obverse combined with the Alexandrian legend and style is proof beyond doubt that this obverse die was intended for an Alexandrian billon tetradrachm, but how could this be? The RPC Antiochene groups 1-3 tetradrachms are all struck in 'Alexandrian' style. Many scholarly theories abound as to why: either the coins were struck at the Alexandria mint and then sent to Syria for circulation or, at the very least, the dies were engraved there. It's also possible (but unlikely) that Alexandrian mint workers were sent to Antioch to help set up the mint or bolster its production. This Alexandrian/Antiochene hybrid strongly hints that these Alexandrian style coins were indeed struck at Alexandria. In this case a die intended for a domestic tetradrachm somehow got mixed up with their Syrian work order. It must be said however that Antiochene silver is of a different composition than that used at Alexandria, so it is possible the dies were engraved in Alexandria and then shipped to the Antioch mint, in which case an Alexandrian die got mixed up with the shipment. Only two specimens have been recorded of this rare hybrid, surprisingly both are from different die pairs. This example is illustrated in Michel and Karin Prieur's type corpus The Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms.</p><p><br /></p><p>Is this coin the Rosetta Stone needed to solve the complicated questions surrounding the mintage of these Vespasianic tetradrachms? Perhaps, but I fear it raises more questions than answers. A fascinating coin nonetheless!</p><p><br /></p><p>For comparison, here is a contemporary Alexandrian billon tetradrachm from the same issue the obverse die originated from.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1286382[/ATTACH]<b>Vespasian</b></p><p>AR Tetradrachm, 12.17g</p><p>Alexandria mint, 70-71 AD</p><p>Obv: AYTOK KAIΣ ΣEBA OYVEΣΠAΣIANOY; Head of Vespasian, laurerate, r., date LΓ before neck</p><p>Rev: PΩ-MH; Roma standing l., with spear and shield</p><p>RPC 2424 (0 spec.).</p><p>Ex eBay, 7 March 2018.</p><p><br /></p><p>The coin also inspired me to purchase the Prieur catalogue in which it is featured.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1286381[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>Feel free to post your 'better late than never' coins.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="David Atherton, post: 7392949, member: 82616"]I have known of this coin for over 6 years. It has resided in CGB's online store all that time, with me occasionally checking in to see if it was still available. I believe the piece was overlooked by other collectors. Last week I finally pulled the trigger and purchased it ... I'm not sure why I waited so long nor why it went unsold! It's such a landmark coin and will be a cornerstone in the provincial section of my collection. [ATTACH=full]1286380[/ATTACH] [B]Vespasian[/B] AR Tetradrachm, 11.99g Antioch mint, 70-71 AD Obv: ΑΥΤΟΚ ΚΑΙΣ ΣΕΒΑ ΟΥΕΣΠΑΣΙΑΝΟΥ, LΓ (in right field); Head of Vespasian, laureate, r. Rev: ΕΤΟΥΣ Γ ΙΕΡΟΥ; Eagle standing, l., on club; in field, palm branch RPC 1949 (0 spec.). Prieur 115 (this coin). Acquired from CGB.fr, April 2021. Ex Banias Hoard. A most remarkable regnal year 3 Antiochene hybrid tetradrachm struck with an obverse die intended for an Alexandrian tetradrachm. The regnal year on the obverse combined with the Alexandrian legend and style is proof beyond doubt that this obverse die was intended for an Alexandrian billon tetradrachm, but how could this be? The RPC Antiochene groups 1-3 tetradrachms are all struck in 'Alexandrian' style. Many scholarly theories abound as to why: either the coins were struck at the Alexandria mint and then sent to Syria for circulation or, at the very least, the dies were engraved there. It's also possible (but unlikely) that Alexandrian mint workers were sent to Antioch to help set up the mint or bolster its production. This Alexandrian/Antiochene hybrid strongly hints that these Alexandrian style coins were indeed struck at Alexandria. In this case a die intended for a domestic tetradrachm somehow got mixed up with their Syrian work order. It must be said however that Antiochene silver is of a different composition than that used at Alexandria, so it is possible the dies were engraved in Alexandria and then shipped to the Antioch mint, in which case an Alexandrian die got mixed up with the shipment. Only two specimens have been recorded of this rare hybrid, surprisingly both are from different die pairs. This example is illustrated in Michel and Karin Prieur's type corpus The Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms. Is this coin the Rosetta Stone needed to solve the complicated questions surrounding the mintage of these Vespasianic tetradrachms? Perhaps, but I fear it raises more questions than answers. A fascinating coin nonetheless! For comparison, here is a contemporary Alexandrian billon tetradrachm from the same issue the obverse die originated from. [ATTACH=full]1286382[/ATTACH][B]Vespasian[/B] AR Tetradrachm, 12.17g Alexandria mint, 70-71 AD Obv: AYTOK KAIΣ ΣEBA OYVEΣΠAΣIANOY; Head of Vespasian, laurerate, r., date LΓ before neck Rev: PΩ-MH; Roma standing l., with spear and shield RPC 2424 (0 spec.). Ex eBay, 7 March 2018. The coin also inspired me to purchase the Prieur catalogue in which it is featured. [ATTACH=full]1286381[/ATTACH] Feel free to post your 'better late than never' coins.[/QUOTE]
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