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Message:: [QUOTE="Alegandron, post: 4495875, member: 51347"][ATTACH=full]1115303[/ATTACH]Cilicia - Tarsosturretcounterstamped Bow Pompey PiratesAE 19 164 BCETyche-Zeus seatedEx: [USER=42773]@John Anthony[/USER] auctionJohn's comments:An autonomous issue of Cilicia, Tarsos. The coin presents robust details and a pretty patina, and would be very collectible in and of itself, but the countermark adds an additional level of intrigue. These bow case stamps are occasionally found on coins of the south coastal regions of Asia Minor, although their meaning is uncertain. In 67 BC, Pompey crushed the Cilician Pirates and subjected the city to Roman rule, making Tarsos the capitol of the Province of Cilicia. Tarsos was also the scene of Marc Antony and Cleopatra’s first meeting, so it’s possible the counterstamps remonetizing these issues had something to do with the political struggles of the Late Roman Republic. The counterstamp on this coin is unusually crisp, showing the bow, case, and several arrows in their entirety - the best example of the stamp I’ve seen, ever. Also, the stamper was very kind to us collectors by placing it in an area where it interferes with the devices only minimally.[/QUOTE]