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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;John Anthony, post: 8070083, member: 42773&quot;]It would have to be this <i>sela</i> (drachm) of Obodas II. Early Nabataean silver is exceedingly rare, and early Nabataean silver that&#039;s well-struck, undamaged, and well-preserved is even rarer. The market demand, however, is quite low - Roman silver of comparable rarity would cost tens of thousands of dollars. Nevertheless, for a collector of modest means like myself, a retail price tag of $1200 is a challenge. So I was astonished to win this coin at a little over half that amount after fees. Apparently the other Nabataean collectors were asleep that day...</p><p><br /></p><p>[ATTACH=full]1399697[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>NABATAEA. Obodas II, with Hagaru I. Circa 30-9 BC.</p><p>AR Sela (drachm) 17mm, 4.52g, 1h; Petra mint.</p><p>Uncertain date but struck between 21/0 and 10/9 BC.</p><p>CNG 503 Lot 254</p><p><br /></p><p>A few salient points for those unfamiliar with Nabataean coinage.</p><p><br /></p><p>1. By the time this coin was minted, Petra was well established as the chief Nabataean stronghold and trading center.</p><p><br /></p><p>2. On his coinage, Obodas II instituted the tradition of including the bust of the queen, sometimes jugate with with the king on the obverse, sometimes singly on the reverse. This tradition would continue until the end of the empire, even on the bronze coins. No other ancient coinage featured the queen on almost every type.</p><p><br /></p><p>3. The busts on early Nabataean coins have simple facial details and a hairstyle that features ringlets. This is the &quot;archaic&quot; style.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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