Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire by Catharine Lorber

Discussion in 'Ancient Coins' started by TheRed, Oct 10, 2018.

  1. TheRed

    TheRed Well-Known Member

    Lorber, Catharine C. Coins of the Ptolemaic Empire Part 1. The American Numismatic Society, 2018
    ISBN 9780897223317
    Price: $235

    PtolemaicCovers.jpg

    For anyone that has ever purchased a Ptolemaic coin there is one name that is unavoidable: Svoronos. He is the author of what was the standard reference for Ptolemaic coins. The work is long out of print and inaccessible to allmost all collectors due to it's age (written in 1908), language (Greek), and price (really high). In it's place arose a number of websites, books, and articles to fill the void. There was always hope that someone would write a modern reference. In 2015 rumor spread that Catharine Lorber was working on such a project. Previously she co-authored a two part for volume work on Seleucid coins that has become thestandard reference. In 2018 the first part of her work on Ptolemaic coins was finally published.

    Part 1 covers the coinage of Ptolemy I through Ptolemy IV and is divided into two volumes; one on the precious metal coinage and the other on bronze. Beyond being a type catalogue of the coinage, there is an incredible amount of additional information contained in the work. Volume 1 contains an introduction that provides a detailed history, 245 pages, of the Ptolemaic Empire during the reign of the first for rulers. This section examines not only the political history, but also the economic, religious, and social histories. The sections devoted to the numismatic iconography of each of the rulers are the highlight of the introduction. Such is the quality of the work that it could have been a standalone volume or even book.

    After the introduction comes the real numismatic meat of volume 1: the catalogue of the precious metal coins. Starting with Cleomenes of Naucratis, the volume works through the four Ptolemaic kings and covers both gold and silver coins. The rulers are covers chronologically while the mints that produced coins during each reign are covered by region. The individual issues of each mint are listed in the order they were produced. Once the for rulers are covered, those coins that could not be attributed to a specific ruler are listed. The last section of Volume 1 is the appendices which has a nice concordance to Svoronos, a list of remarkable types denominations and inscriptions, and detailed section on control marks. Finally there are 75 plates of coins.

    Volume 2, which covers the bronze coinage, is arranged in an identical manner with one exception, there is no introduction. This makes for a much smaller volume. At the end of the volume are 45 plates of coins.

    So, what to make of this massive work? It is an incredible accomplishment. The catalogue of Ptolemaic coins is impressive, the plates are nicely done, and the historical information is so far beyond what is normally encountered in a numismatic work. Most importantly, it was a pleasure to read and fills a glaring hole in the current numismatic literature.

    All that being said, it is not for everyone. The price obviously makes it a very expensive work to acquire. The volumes will also be difficult to use if you do not have a decent knowledge of the coinage. Without a Svoronos number it will be challenging to attribute coins without delving into the control marks or pouring over the plates.

    Still, if you have the money (Amazon gift cards in my case) and more importantly the interest in Ptolemaic coins, I would highly recommend buying Part 1.
     
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  3. TIF

    TIF Always learning.

    Thanks for the review. The books are on my shopping list. When they first came out I went to the ANS site to buy them but couldn't easily figure out how get the member discount and it fell off my radar for a while. Now I see that you can buy them for the discounted price on Amazon without having to be an ANS member. Heh.
     
  4. Al Kowsky

    Al Kowsky Well-Known Member

    Love that Ptolemaic bronze!
     
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