The first Roman tetradrachms struck on the Island of Cyprus were from the reign of Vespasian, and were good quality silver, about 80% pure. On the other hand, the tetradrachms of Caracalla were billon, about 35% pure silver. The tetradrachms struck under Caracalla were minted to help fund his proposed war against the Persian Empire. Most of his coins were hastily made from poorly engraved dies. Michel Prieur states that "these coins cannot be attributed to Cyprus with certainty", however, all the major auction houses and dealers today assign these coins to Cyprus. Cyprus was a major exporter of copper and wheat. Under Septimius Severus, Cyprus reached its peak of development. Caracalla had two statues consecrated to himself on the Island of Cyprus. The most important temple on Cyprus was the Temple of Aphrodite, in the city of Palaiaphos. The temple held the sacred baetyl stone (meteorite), and it is still on display today. I finally added the mint state tetradrachm pictured below to my collection after a long search. CYPRUS. Caracalla, AD 198-217 (struck AD 215-217). Koinon of Cyprus. Billon Tetradrachm: 12.75 gm, 25.55 mm, 1 h. Obverse: Laureate but of Caracalla. Reverse: Eagle with wreath in beak, ear of grain below. Prieur 1580. Bellinger 383. Ex Kenneth S. Abramowitz Collection. CNG Triton XXV, lot 5247. Map showing the locations of Paphos and Salamis, the likely Roman mints. Photo of the sacred baetyl stone. Reference: The Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms & Their Fraction, from 57 BC to AD 253. Michel & Karen Prieur. Copyright 2000. Classical Numismatic Group, Inc. CT members are welcome to post any coins of Roman Cyprus or anything relevant to this thread .
Nice tetradrachm (excellent grade), Al, and write-up! Here's my lone Cyprus tetradrachm of Caracalla, 215-217 AD, quite crude, as you pointed out. 16.49 grams Here's one of my meteorites, but it is not in a temple, rather in a dusty corner of the house. It weighs 954.7 grams by my kitchen scale. It is from Campo Del Cielo, Argentina, iron-nickel, part of a huge strewn field that included 26 craters! Meteorites weighing up to several tons were recovered over the years.
My Prieur 1580 is listed in my records using the other mint choice Akko. I never considered it all that crude but such things are influenced by opinion. For my meteorite, I'll offer a Chelyabinsk that fell 15 February 2013 causing damage and injuries mostly from glass broken by the shockwave. My example broke on impact (hit something hard?) which allowed taking the microscopic view of the interior. A piece of this meteorite (not my specimen) set a first by having a video made of its impact on an icy lake by a security camera but I was unable to find that video. As I understand the story, school children were given time off to go find pieces across the strewn field. Of my meteorites, I selected this for having a similar fusion crust appearance to the sacred baetyl stone shown above.
Nice coin, Doug. Your coin and Al's have interesting symbols at the base of Caracalla's neck. I am not sure if they are just ornamental or serve some other purpose. Yes, the fusion crust of the Sacred Baetyl Stone does indicate that it is a stony meteorite. Very cool closeup! A very crystalline silicate structure.
robinjojo, Thanks for posting your Tet & meteorite . I would love to add a verified fist-size meteorite to my collection but they are very pricey . Looks like I'll just have to wait till one falls on my front lawn . Your fat Tet is remarkable for its weight of 16.49 gm !
Doug, Thanks for posting your Tet & meteorite . Your Tet is unusually fine quality for this issue, probably an early strike . I see no reason why anyone would label this coin from the Akko-Ptolemais mint . The mintmark on your coin is the same as mine, an ear of grain. The only mintmarks used at Akko-Ptolemais were a very complex idol & the two caps of the Dioscuri.
robinjojo, That strange mark you noticed under the bust of Caracalla is the Greek letter B (Beta). The inscription should end CEB, but often this letter is missing because of poor spacing. Prieur also remarks that this letter occasionally looks like a cross instead of a B.
The hobby of collecting meteorites IMO suffers from an addiction to weight for pricing just like we see for wear in coins and centering in stamps. Some meteorites have interesting shapes and show artifacts of the fall that make them better to my eye. Others are hunks of rock. My favorite meteorite belongs to the Smithsonian in Washington DC. It has been on display there for 150 years but they moved it from its original display.
Very interesting Cypriot issue and I was unaware that Caracalla (and other rulers) were minting coins there.
That is a fascinating meteorite or what's left of it . It looks like the center of it vaporized before hitting the earth. It must have looked spectacular while traveling in the sky...
Nobody here has a Paphos or a Koinon of Cyprus coin showing the baetyl in its shrine? It's fantastic to compare the baetyl as figured on coins with the actual stone!
https://fineart.ha.com/itm/meteorit...ue-iron-meteorite-in-the-world/a/6042-49178.s This meteorite is interesting enough just by shape but really fascinating when you consider the story about is in the 1840-1865 period. During that period, a small piece was cut off to be analyzed and that piece later cut up and sold. Heritage provided a decent summary of the story when they sold a piece. In truth, the whole thing has been stolen so many times that I wouldn't be surprised if there were suits filed to return it to its heavenly origin and have it launched into orbit. https://fineart.ha.com/itm/meteorit...ue-iron-meteorite-in-the-world/a/6042-49178.s
Interesting story indeed ! Fortunately it was rescued from Mexico where it was being used as an anvil . The small piece (less than 5 gm) auctioned by Heritage for $2,390 gives an idea how precious this object is.
Yes, these Campo Del Cielo meteorites were much more readily available about 20 or so years ago. There was a meteorite dealer in Oakland who imported them by the barrel full and selling them primarily through eBay. I understand that exportation of these meteorites has long been banned by Argentina.
