Here it is - my first Seleucid Tetradrachm

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Nice addition


Alexander III the Great (336 - 323 B.C.)
AR Tetradrachm
O: Head of Alexander as Hercules right, wearing lion-skin headdress.
R: AΛEΞAN∆POY, Zeus enthroned left, right leg forward (archaic lifetime style), eagle in extended right hand, long scepter vertical behind in left hand, bow on left.
Salamis mint, struck 332-323 B.C.
16.95g
25mm
Price 3139 ; SNG Alpha Bank 662; Newell. Salamis 7.

Lifetime Issue

 

Very nice Tet @AussieCollector !

Yeah, the HARD part is having the gavel-price stuck in your head, THEN the reality of fees/customs/shipping/credit card,etc piled on. I always try to picture the price +35% when I look at the bids. Helps me not to have too much shell-shock should I win...

My Seleukid I Tet:

Seleukid Seleukos I 312-280 BCE AR Tet 14.46g Seleucia on Tigris. Zeus - Athena driving a quadriga of 4 horned elephants SC 130

 

A very nice coin indeed, but I'm curious why you didn't choose one of the more distinctively Seleucid types for a first tetradrachm.

 

I don't know AC's answer but my first Seleucid came in an NFA auction 28 years ago. It asked me to bid on it an who was I to say I'm waiting for one with elephants. I never got one with 'distinct' types and never got all that interested in Seleucids. Maybe that is why???

 

My first:


Antiochus VII Euergetes, Seleucid Kingdom, BC 138-129
AR, tetradrachm, 16.59g, 30mm; 12h; Antioch
Obv.: Diademed head of Antiochus VII right
Rev.: BAΣIΛEΩΣ ANTIOXOY EVEPΓETOY; Athena Nikephoros standing left; to outer left, monogram above A; all within wreath.

And second:


Seleucid Kingdom, Demetrios I Soter, 162-150 BC
AR tetradrachm, 16g, 32mm; Antioch mint, 162-155 BC
Obv.: Diademed head of Demetrios I right within wreath.
Rev.: Tyche, holding scepter and cornucopia, seated left on throne supported by tritonesses right, monogram to outer left. In two vertical lines, BAΣIΛEΩΣ ΔHMHTPIOY (King Demetrios).

And a debatable third:


Philip I Philadelphos, semi-autonomous city issue of Antioch
AR, tetradrachm, 26mm, 12h; Antioch mint 46/5 BC or later
Obv.: Diademed head left
Rev.: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΦΙΑΠΠΟV ΕΠΙΦΑΝΟVΣ ΦΙΛΑΔΕΑΦΟV; Zeus Nikephoros seated left holding spear in left hand holding victory presenting laurel wreath in right; AYT monogram to inner left, date in exergue (off flan)

 

Cool tet @AussieCollector ! Mine is from the tail end of the Seleucids instead of the founder.



SELEUKID KINGS OF SYRIA. Philip I Philadelphos, 95-83 BC. Tetradrachm. Antioch.

O: Diademed head right. R: ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟΥ ΕΠIΦΑΝΟΥΣ ΦIΛΑΔΕΛΦΟΥ. Zeus seated left with Nike and sceptre: Control: monogram. SNG Israel 2799. Condition: Very fine. Weight: 15.7g. Diameter: 26 mm.

 

All the coins in this post are very nice; but this one @dougsmit has a wonderful portrait!

 

Excellent coin!

 

Good coin to start a Seleukid collection, well done Aussie.
Here's mine:


@Alegandron , your quadriga tet needs a better picture !

 

You're lucky. For me, by the time the buyer's commission, currency-exchange fees, shipping and PayPal fees are added in, when I buy something in Euros, the final price in dollars is about 150% of that. For example, that denarius that was a steal at 60 Euros will end up costing me 90 US dollars.

 

Great coin!

 

Always interesting to learn the why a particular coin was collected.

 

Congrats on the tet of Seleukos @AussieCollector you got a great coin with the nice Susa bust. Welcome to the Seleucid fan club. I would argue that your coin is distinctly Seleucid as it has the name of Seleukos on the reverse. Besides, those Seleukos/trophy, zeus/quadriga elephants, and horse/elephant tetradrachms can get very expensive.

I recently picked up a tet of Seleukos I from Seleukeia on the Tigris for the control mark on the reverse.

I would also recommend the book Coins of the Seleucid Empire from the Collection of Arthur Houghton by Oliver D. Hoover as a good introductory work on Seleucid coins. It can be found for $60 or so in used condition with a little patience and hunting.

 

Have you calibrated your scale? If so, I'd just chalk it up to a minor mistake by the seller (measurement error, typo, etc). If not, perhaps a calibration is in order.