Been having a blast identifying coins from my mixed lot from Timeline I have been able to identify them all (even a tricky, for me, Parthian). But the last, and tiniest, has me scratching my head. It is a tiny obol. Just 0.8 gr and about 7 mm. The alloy appears to be debased silver, my best guess, or possibly bronze. It has an incuse punch on the reverse and the obverse is (best guesses cat?, dolphin ??)... something I would appreciate some help figuring out, as well as the coins homeland: Any help is appreciated
I believe what you have there is actually an unpopped popcorn kernel. You know, the ones at the bottom of the bag which sneak into the fistful you're eating and make you break a tooth? With that quip, I'll show myself the door. Sorry- haven't a clue here, I'm afraid. Way out of my depth.
...The ones that are unpopped, but fat and brown, are the best ones. When I was a kid, the family fought over 'em. When they marketed Corn Nuts, I said, 'See?!?' ...Sorry, zero help with the obol. Up close, does it really look like some kind of bovine?
Looks like a billon fraction from Lesbos, although the incuse punch looks like the ace of spades do you have a more exact weight?
For no (redundancy alert: ) rational reason, there was some hope in the back of my mind that this might be from Lesbos. Really only because I found one of the ones with the African profile, c. 5th c. BCE.
Thanks so much! My Triton 2 scale doesn't go beyond tenths of a gram. But it seems to be pretty close to 0.8 as when I first put it on it registered .7 but on the next three attempts after calibrating it was .8 gr each time. And great call out on the interesting incuse design Lol @lordmarcovan and @+VGO.DVCKS I was pretty sure it was a kernel fallen out of my late night munchies fest... but when it chipped my tooth and tasted like history, I realized it must be an ancient coin
Attribution: Kingdom of Unknowable Billon Knob 7mm, 0.8g Obv: Useless Blob Rev: Incuse afterthought Ex: @Ryro Comment: This is actually an Ancient Jujube... Found on an ancient theatre floor, stuck on a sandal.
This is quite a puzzle.... The flan characteristics point to a billon fraction from Lesbos. I can't associate it with a known depiction. It's too small to be an african head, it might be a very worn bull's or boar's head. Are the rest of the coins in your lot from Asia minor?
Funny enough, I'm fairly familiar with tiny archaic lesbians: Lesbos. Uncertain mint circa 500-450 BC. Obol BI 8mm., 0,89g. Confronted boars' heads / Quadripartite incuse square. very fine Klein 348 LESBOS. Uncertain. BI 1/36 Stater (Circa 500-450 BC). Obv: Two eyes or grain ears (shields??) Rev: Quadripartite incuse square (swastika-shaped). SNG Copenhagen 292; HGC 6, 1074. Condition: very fine. Weight: 0.26 g. Diameter: 3 mm. Agreed about it not being the African head. And though that reverse has the closest to the ace of spades/arrow look of mine, I hold the coin at every angle and don't think it's a boar smashing against a shield nor confronting heads.
Could that be a ram's head on the obverse? With an off center quatripartite incuse punch? Klazomenai, in Ionia?
Last bump, I promise. I was able to get much better pictures using a magnifying glass in front of my phone and I tried a different angle. Any ideas or guesses what and where this little fella is from?
The lightning makes it a lot more easier. Looks to me a forepart of a horse/goat? Indeed looks Billon but the weight indicates an Obol. Perhaps a debased coin. https://www.acsearch.info/search.html?id=4893910 Legs are not entirely the same, but the above coin is unpublished. Could be that you have an unpublished variety as well from the same region or I am IDing it wrong, but definitely looks like the forepart of an animal.
Excellent eye! Thanks so much! I was thinking it was an eagle for a while and what is the tucked legs where it's left wing. But I think you are right. Now off to ac search. Here is the adjusted photo:
