Gela Tetradrachm with forepart of man-headed bull - River God Achelous

SICILY, Gela
AR Tetradrachm
480 - 475 B.C.
17.18 gms, 25-26 mm
Obv: Charioteer driving walking biga
right, Nike flying above, crowning
horses.
Rev: Forepart of man-headed bull right.
C-E-Λ-AΣ (C mostly off flan)
Grade: Overall Good Very Fine with
claim to a higher grade bar an old
reverse scratch and obverse radial
flow lines possibly due to a
deteriorated die.
Very little wear is evident- Near EF.
Other: Jenkins 139 similar to the Bode Museum example.
Ex David Murray of Tyche Numismatics from AncientNoob August 2016.


Yep, I got one. I’ve had this coin on the want list forever. This puppy was offered to Anoob & he traded it to me quickly. (I snatched-it-up the day it arrived so you folks never got to see it).

The fabric is nice & reminiscent of my other Tets from ancient Sicily. I’m pretty stoked. It’s real right? I’d sure appreciate your comments & please post ‘em if you got ‘em.

 

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The original tag stated Jenkins 139. It would be appreciated if one of you CoinTalkers could direct me to a Webpage or confirm that this is the correct data for my new coin.

I haven’t posted much at CT in a while. I’m still avidly collecting & like everyone, I have been busy with the summer activities. My son got married in July and I’ve been helping my customers & friends start-up Vinyl record production facilities. The Vinyl record business has been going crazy since the beginning of 2016. Yes, you read that correctly - the Vinyl record industry is growing & we are actually building new Vinyl plants today. Who would have guessed that?

Here is a map depicting Gela in ancient Sicily:

 

Oh, there's just the reference for you...PM @Nicholas Molinari or go back a little in the Ancients section because there's a book all about these man faced bulls.

It's a very cool coin! It's too bad about the scratch but it's still awesome.

And vinyl...it's the hipsters. They even want cassette tapes! Why? Beyond me. I think they revel in fashion and technology that has fallen out of favor but whatever. Not like I spend my money on money that no one uses as money anymore...

 

I wonder if I could afford the same coin without the scratch.

The new Gela coin reminds me of the example I photographed at Germany’s Bode Museum. Here are the Bode example & my new “scratched example” for comparison:

 

Nice coin, looks legit and a match to Jenkins 139:

https://manfacedbullsar.wordpress.com/gela/

 

It's Acheloios Gelas, in my opinion.

 

Vinyl records?? You mean I should have KEPT all of mine??

Terrific coin!!! Love the clarity of the devices....and it's a TET!!!

I finally snagged my first example a few weeks ago....but mine is a didrachm from Neapolis:

 

I had been looking for a Gela tetradrachm for awhile, too, Collect89. I finally bought mine on May 22 in Nomos 12, Zurich. It is dated about 30 years later than yours. At 30 mm, it is one of the widest Gela tetradrachms I've ever seen:



Gela, Sicily, AR Tetradrachm, c 450-440 BC, 30 mm, 16.45 g, 5h. OBV: Quadriga driven slowly to right by a bearded charioteer; above, Nike flying right, holding a wreath to crown the horses in her right hand and a fillet in her left hand; in exergue, palmette with tendrils / REV: CΕΛΑΣ; Forepart of man-faced bull to right. Gulbenkian 199. Jenkins, Gela 354 (same dies). Rizzo pl. XVII, 20. SNG ANS 65 (same dies), HGC 2 343 (Scarce).
Ex: Classical Numismatic Group, Inc., Auction 100, October 7, 2015, lot 1267.
Ex: Numismatik Lanz Munchen, Auction 50, November 27, 1989, lot 61.

 

But how do they know this? I think it is fascinating that scholars can date these coins.

 

The style. Jenkins did an extensive die study of these based on important hoard evidence.

 

Nice MFB coins, still haven't started my search for one. I see there are a lot of varieties to choose from.

@Collect89 .Pretty cool to be in the vinyl record industry. I've been into vinyl records for a few years now, and I'm pretty sure business is going well considering the price for new records. BTW, I'm not a hipster.

 

nice, cograts to you C89...MHB looks great!

 

See I was gonna market this as bull bodied man - but I am backwards.

 

NO! Fake, give it back.

 

Despite the scratch it is a really nice example. The obverse die is rarely that clear. I would have bought it for sure.

 

I hope that that folks reading this will go to the link you supplied. It is a fantastic online resource for these man-faced-bull coins. Thank you muchly for providing the link!
https://manfacedbullsar.wordpress.com/gela/

 

Hey, I get to post my MFB's...


Campania Neapolis 320-300 BC AR Nomos Nymph Achelous
Ex: Dr. @Ancientnoob


Sicily Gela AR Litra Horse-Achelous 0-63g 13mm 465-450 BCE Obv-Rev HGC 2 p 373
Ex: @John Anthony


Campania AE Apollo-Acheloios -275-250BCE PLATE COIN 3 KNOWN RARE SNG ANS 474 - Potamikon 343
Cool to be able to list a NEW REFERENCE! Eh, Mr. @Nicholas Molinari ???

I reckon my next step is look up my other two and assign Potamikon numbers to them too.

 

You'll have to wait until we do the volumes covering silver. But you can still learn a lot about the iconography in the meantime.

 

Yeah, I have already been highlighting and scoring up you book. It is true, you never want to buy any of my books after I use it. I make notes, score, highlight, comment, draw... Librarians would hate me (yeah, @ancientcoinguru )

 

I am a librarian lol. At least it is your own copy. Rare book dealers 100 years from now will really hate you. They hate librarians too since we stamp and mark everything! I think it adds character