Various attractive ancient coins for sale, below retail prices! PM if interested. Shipping is $5 for any amount of coins. Payment by Paypal, Transferwise, or Postal MO. PM me if interested and happy collecting! (No offers please. These coins are already marked significantly below retail, as you can see in the provided links.) ________________________________________________________________ 1. “This coin refers to Constantine's victory in the Sarmatian war in 322 A.D. According to Zosimus (lib. 2), Constantine routed the Sarmatae and drove them back beyond the Danube where they rallied to renew the fight. He defeated them and again put them to flight, taking a great number of prisoners. Their king, Rausimodus, was left among the slain.” [FORVM] Very few Constantinian coins commemorate specific historical events, and this is a beautiful example of the type with sharp details and a lovely aquamarine patina. This coin would run you $70 to $100 at retail, see vcoins here. $40 Constantine I, AE follis, 20mm, 3.0g, 12h; Sirmium mint, AD 324-5. Obv.: CONSTAN-TINVS AVG; Laureate head right. Rev.: SARMATIA DEVICTA (Samartia vanquished), Victory advancing right, treading on captive with left foot, trophy in right hand, palm frond in left hand; SIRM crescent in exergue. Reference: RIC VII Sirmium 48, p. 475. ______________________________________________________ 2. SOLD ______________________________________________________ 3. Gela, on the Southern shore of Sicily, was founded in the late 7th century by Dorian Greeks. Little is known of its early history, but in the fifth century, the city was one of the first to send military assistance to Syracuse in opposition to the Sicilian Expedition of the Athenians. “Realizing that Gela would be the next major target of Cathaginian attack, the Geloians immediately sought assistance from Syracuse and its new tyrant, Dionysos I…Despite the arrival of Dionysios I with a relieving force, the Carthaginians captured and destroyed Gela.” (Hoover, HGC 2, p. 95-6) The city was eventually rebuilt over the next few centuries, but declined to a place of little consequence by the first century AD. These small bronzes with head of Gelas and bull were struck immediately prior to the Carthaginian destruction of the town in 405 BC. They aren’t particularly rare, but better examples fetch prices over $100, see CNG here. Some sources consider the bull to be the obverse, Gela reverse. Take your pick. $40 SICILY, Gela. Circa 420-405 BC. Æ Tetras or Trionkion, 20mm, 3.7g, 10h. Obv.: Head of young river god right. Rev.: Bull standing left, head lowered; ••• (mark of value) in exergue. Reference: HGC 2, 379 (p. 106). From the Theodosius collection. ______________________________________________________ 4. SOLD ______________________________________________________ 5. Minute bronze of Kastabala. Read the sign. A tiny bronze of Hierapolis-Kastabala, dating to the period just after Seleucid rule, thick desert patina. Nice little numismatic snack! $20 CILICIA. Hierapolis-Kastabala Æ10, 1.4g, 12h. Obv.: Head of Tyche right. Rev.: Eagle left. Reference: SNG France 2223. From the Theodosius Collection. ______________________________________________________ The next two coins come from Roman Thessalonica - it was founded in 315 BC by Cassander of Macedon, named after his wife Thessalonike, who was Alexander the Great's half-sister. It became the capital of the Roman province of Macedonia, and eventually the capital of all the Greek provinces, owing to its central placement along major trade routes. Paul the Apostle visited the city's synagogues and wrote two letters to the budding Christian church, preserved in the Biblical canon as First and Second Thessalonians. 6. Here is a Kabeiros standing in a distyle temple on the reverse of a coin struck for Gordian III. The Kabeiri were a group of cthonic deities worshiped in secretive mystery cults, belonging to the class of fabulous races such as the Cyclopes and the Dactyls. This is a rare type, none at vcoins or ma-shops at the moment. I found this one sold by Savoca (a die match), and this one at Wildwinds. As you can see, the reverse has some damage, but nothing unusual for your typical crusty provincials. Lots of excellent detail on this specimen! $35 MACEDON. Thessalonica. Gordian III AD 238-244. Æ27, 11.3g, 12h. Obv.: AVT K M ANTΩNIOC ΓΟΡΔIANOC; Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Rev.: ΘЄCCAΛΟΝΙ-ΚЄΩΝ ΝЄΩΚΟ-ΡΩΝ; Distyle temple containing Kabeiros standing facing, head left, between two urns containing palm, holding rhyton and hammer. Reference: Touratsoglou 145; Price & Trell 132. Ex. ArtCoins Roma; From the Theodosius Collection. ______________________________________________________ 7. The Temple of Apollo at Delphi is celebrated on this Thessalonian issue of Gordian III. The ritual tripod is surmounted by an offering of five apples, surrounded by the word ΠYΘΙΑ. The Pythia was the name of the high priestess that served as the oracle. Read the excellent, well-detailed article on wiki here. Tripods were featured in various forms on the coinage of Thessalonica. See vcoins here for examples with apples and amphora (no ΠYΘΙΑ), agnostic urn, and Apollo with cithara set on tripod. Here are five of the apple types on acsearch. This specimen has a great reverse, but as you can see, Gordian is a bit crusty with mineral deposits. It's a great example of Greek religion on a Roman coin. $35 MACEDON. Thessalonica. Gordian III, 238-244. Æ28, 10.6g, 2h. Obv.: AVT K MAP ANT ΓOPΔIANOC; Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III to right. Rev.: ΘECCAΛONEIKEΩN NEΩKO; Tripod surmounted by five apples; ΠYΘΙΑ across the fields. Reference: Touratsoglou, Thessaloniki 80; Varbanov 4523. From the Theodosius Collection. ______________________________________________________ 8. This coin was struck in Edessa of Macedon, as opposed to the infamous Edessa on the border of the Roman and Parthian Empires, where Valerian would be defeated and captured by Shapur I. Ancient Greek Edessa holds the distinction of being the first capital of Macedon. During Roman times, the city flourished as an important trading center, situated on the Via Egnatia. Here is a coin of Philip I in which the iconography is starkly plain: the Tyche of Edessa pays tribute to Rome. This is a fairly rare type. Here are a couple at acsearch. Wonderful detail and clean, smooth surfaces on this specimen! $35 MACEDON. Edessa. Philip I, 244-249. Æ28, 8.0g, 6h. Obv.: AV K M IOYΛIOC ΦIΛIΠΠOC; Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Philip I to right, seen from behind. Rev.: EΔECCAIΩN; Roma seated left on shield, holding Nike, being crowned by the Tyche of Edessa standing left behind, holding cornucopia. Reference: Varbanov 3690-3692. From the Theodosius Collection.
