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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;John Anthony, post: 2292485, member: 42773&quot;]The brothers IX and X had a typical <i>Game of Thrones</i> thing going on, alternately ruling the Ptolemaic Empire between 110 and 81 BC. In the case of the chalkoi, the smallest ae denomination, sometimes it&#039;s clear when the coins belong to IX as he fashioned himself Soter, and the lettering reads ΣΩΤΗ.</p><p><br /></p><p>What are we to make of the varieties that are not so obvious? Usually they all have some abbreviation of ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ. On this coin, I read ΠΤ (in exergue, upside down), [ΟΛ]ΕΜ (on the left), and [ΒΑ]ΣΙΛ (on the right). But then there&#039;s one little letter left, which appears to be Λ, but could be A. If it&#039;s Λ, it could possibly abbreviate Larythos, signifying Ptolemy IX, but if it&#039;s A, could it be the Cyrenaean king Ptolemy Apion (c.150-96 BC), who also struck the same types?</p><p><br /></p><p>Sometimes I really wish the Ptolemiac monarchs would have been as egotistical as the Romans in clearly spelling out their names on the coinage. All the usual websites are no help on this one, but if I were to take a guess, I would say the last letter is Λ, making it Ptolemy IX. I&#039;m going to ask for some help at FORVM, which the owner of Ptolemae frequents, but I thought I&#039;d share it here as well. (It&#039;s a very nice example of these itsy-bitsy things at least.)</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]459615[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p><font size="4"><b>Ptolemy Take Your Pick</b></font></p><p><font size="4">AE Chalkous, 13mm, 2.1g, Uncertain mint of Cyprus(?), or Alexandria, 145-88 BC.</font></p><p><font size="4">Obv.: Head of Zeus Ammon right.</font></p><p><font size="4">Rev.: ΠΤ-[ΟΛ]ΕΜ [ΟΛ]ΕΜ Λ(?); Headdress of Isis.</font></p><p><font size="4">Reference: cf. Svoronos 1845.</font>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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