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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Roerbakmix, post: 5318132, member: 100731&quot;]This coin was in the property of a seller I regularly visit. I saw it about two years ago, when I came to buy an Ambiani stater. He then casually showed me some drawers with other staters, and this one really made an impression on me. The price was too much for my budget, and I didn&#039;t really want to show my interest too much. </p><p><br /></p><p>It&#039;s a &#039;large-flan&#039; stater of the Ambiani tribe, showing Apollo (or a Celtic Goddess) with vine grapes in a very Celtic (but realistic) pose. The reverse shows Nike driving a Chariot, but it&#039;s largely off-flan.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>Fast forward to July this year, when I had the budgets. I was able to buy it for the same price as when I first saw it. But ... now that I had it, it really didn&#039;t do it for me. True: it was large, but these coins can get 27-30 mm; this one was &#039;just&#039; 23 mm. It looked tiny. And, yes, the obverse was of nice design, but the large and deep scratches bothered me (in this photo, I positioned the light just so that they are less visible). Though you don&#039;t buy this coin for the reverse, it didn&#039;t show the cool hovering Nike with a palm-leaf behind; the horse was worn, there were some scratches ... </p><p><br /></p><p>So, I contacted a friend of mine who specializes in Celtic coins, knowing that he would adore it. And so he does: it will be the centerpiece of his collection. I will probably never buy a better specimen (they are scarce; I&#039;ve started a die-study and identified about 75 specimens. In desirable condition, they go for €5000-10.000, which is just too much). I&#039;m happy that it will go to a friend, though looking at the photo, I know I&#039;ll miss it. </p><p><br /></p><p>Anyway: here is the coin that was destined to be my centerpiece:</p><p>[ATTACH=full]1224706[/ATTACH]</p><p>CELTS, Ambiani celts. Denomination: AV Stater, minted: Gaul; c. 125-100 BC</p><p>Obv: Stylized &#039;Celticized&#039; laureate bust of Apollo (or Celtic goddess) to the left, with oversized head and hair shown as an elaborate, tapestry-like pattern that takes up most of the flan. Vine tendril emerging from ear and running to top of head, the ear and hair tendrils represented by three crescents, the bust draped elaborately with embroidered robes.</p><p>Rev: Celtic horse with chariot galloping left, deconstructed version of Nike driving a chariot to left; with a rosette below horse. Horizontal line below.</p><p>Weight: 7.38g; Ø:20mm. Catalogue: . Provenance: acq.: 07-2020</p><p>Although originally derived from Macedonian gold staters of Philip II, this type has moved far beyond mere imitation into the realm of original design, in which case the head of &quot;Apollo&quot; on the obverse, with its enormously enlarged coiffeur and elaborate drapery, should more properly be seen as representing a Gallo-Celtic goddess, perhaps Sirona, a goddess often depicted as Apollo&#039;s consort in later Celtic imagery. This progress toward a distinctive Celtic numismatic art could be seen as reaching its peak with this coin type; later derivations drift off into rote repetition and decadence, with the goddesses&#039; face disappearing altogether and the entire flan filled an abstract pattern of wavy lines and crescents seen here in her hair.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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