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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;svessien, post: 8257085, member: 15481&quot;]Leu lots arrived today. They were all great, better than expected.</p><p>One of the coins that I had felt a slight buyers remorse about, was a coin from the Sophene Kingdom. It was an impulse buy, and could have become a very expensive one, as my bid was supposed to be 55 fr, but a fat finger mistake made to be 455 fr.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1455821[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p>So, I «won» the coin for 95 franc, feeling a bit stupid. And it felt like a good time to find out where the Sophene Kingdom was:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1455820[/ATTACH] </p><p>The Sophene Kingdom is said to be the first Armenian area where they started producing coins after doing trade with the Greeks. Source:</p><p><a href="https://coinweek.com/ancient-coins/coinweek-ancient-coin-series-ancient-coinage-of-armenia/" target="_blank" class="externalLink ProxyLink" data-proxy-href="https://coinweek.com/ancient-coins/coinweek-ancient-coin-series-ancient-coinage-of-armenia/" rel="nofollow">https://coinweek.com/ancient-coins/coinweek-ancient-coin-series-ancient-coinage-of-armenia/</a></p><p><br /></p><p>I now try to understand who the ruler, Mithridates I, was. But that is proving difficult. Nothing in my BMC books, or other books. Wikipedia takes me to another Mithridates, I suspect. Then there’s Parthian Mithridates around the same period. Confusing. It seems I have to shell out another 85 euro to get the Frank Kovacs book about Armenian coins. This coin just walked in the door, and told me I know nothing. I can’t take it.</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1455826[/ATTACH] </p><p><br /></p><p><b>KINGS OF SOPHENE. Mithradates I, circa 2nd half of 2nd century BC.</b>Tetrachalkon (Bronze, 18 mm, 6.86 g, 12 h), Arkathiokerta (?). Draped bust of Mithradates I to left, bearded and wearing bashlyk tied with a diadem; before, countermark: (&#039;p&#039; in Aramaic). <i>Rev.</i> ΒΑΣΙΛЄΩC - MΙΘPAΔATOY Zeus standing front, head to left, holding eagle in his right hand and long scepter in his left. Kovacs 24. For countermark, Kovacs p. 80, 28. Very rare. Thick deposits<i>, otherwise,</i> very fine.</p><p><br /></p><p>What a great coin. </p><p><br /></p><p>Please show coins that have prompted the purchase of a new book![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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