Vol 3, No. 12 NWTJisJmatic Art of Antiquity DECEMBER 1989 $2.

00

Coins reflect history

Tarsus coinage commemorated the great Sandon
by Larry E. McKinney
He was the mighty god of the
mountains. As his fame increased so
also did his attributes, until in time he
became the god of fire. storm, and
fertility as well. He was the great
Sandon··great among the ancient
inhabitants of Cilicia. but virtually
unknown to us moderns. The
monument which bore his name became
both symbol and centerpiece of Tmus,
drawing endless streams of pilgrims and
towists to this important and influential
city. However, the Sandon Monument
was a premature victim of time and
change, and has not survived. Thus.
were it not for the Tarsian coinage and a
few passing references from ancient
writers we would know almost nothing
today about Sandon and his monument
Yet, of the city which hailed him as
chief among the gods, literature,
archaeology, and numismatics can tell
us much.
Strategically situated on the fertile
Cilician plain against an awesome
backdrop of the Taurus Mountains,
ancient Tarsus was the meeting place of
East and West. Here Greco-Roman
, religion and culture melded with a
variety of older oriental cOmplements to
create a truly unique city. And it was as
prosperous a city as it was diverse.
Melting snows from the Taurus
Mountains fed the Cydnus River which
flowed through Tarsus and beyond,
giving the city an all-important
conunercial o utlet to the Mediterranean Figure 1
Sea. In addition, a prominent trade Tetradrachm of
route passed through Tarsus. Thus, the Antiochus VIII
Apostle Paul's boast that he hailed from
"no mean city" (Acts 21:39) certainly
seetJl.l! well founded.
Paul was not the only renowned
personality of antiquity to claim a
connection with Tarsus. For instance,
the Roman orator Cicero served as the
city's governor in around 50 B.C. Only
a few years later, in 41 B.C., a famous
love affair was spawned at Tarsus when
Mark Antony met Cleopatra there.
Too, it was a center of Stoicism, and period Alexander the Great himself had of the successors, but in the end the
such famous philosophers as Zeno, lived for a brief time at Tarsus. Later he Seleucid dynasty prevailed. Once in
Athenodorus, and Nestor resided in made it one of his chief mints. control the Seleucids began a sedulous
Tarsus. Subsequent to Alexander's death control
Over two centuries before the Roman of the city was contested during the wars
Please tum to page XXV

Abbassids - part three

Deterioration of caliphate power traced in coinage
by Stephen Album
The fragmentation of the caliphate
is cenainly the most pronounced feature
of the second phase. Although the roots
of this process can be traced to the civil
war that erupted upon the death of ai-
Rashid in 1931218, it was the
calamitous nine years of virtual anarchy
from 247/862 until 2561870, during
which four caliphs succeeded each other
and powerful factions vied for authority,
both at the court and in the provinces,
that gave the process its grt:~tes t
impetus. By the time of the accession
of the feebleminded al-Mu'tamid in
2561870, large portions of the caliphate
had slipped out of direct caJiphal
control, and were re!merging as the
nuclei of autonomous entities. The
capable al-Muwaffaq, brother of the
caliph and the real power behind the
of this process was the consolidation of
regional power in the hand of various
amirs, some originally assigned to their
district while sti ll in the caliph's
service, others local potentates who had
risen to power independently of any
connections to the caliphate.
Some of the new regiof\al
authorities undertook to distinguish

Miscellanea • • • •
throne, did manage to restore caliphal
authority to most of the traditional
lands, but at great cost, for his efforts
their issues from those of the caliphate.
These new authorities can be categorized
into two sorts, those in open rebellion
. bankrupted the caliph's treasury, and against the caliphate itself, often
• Hermitage exhibit opens in NY compromised central authority by consisting of sectarian groups and their
An exhibit from the Hermitage Museum, located in Leningrad in the granting control over the revenues of leaders, and those who did not oppose
Soviet Union, will be on display at the Sheraton Centre Hotel during the specific regions to the leading amirs of
Ptease tum to page XXVI
New York International Numismatic Convention December 9-10, 1989. the court and the anny.36 The net effect
Included in the exhibit are 71 1 items, spanning almost the entire range of
Soviet coinages, from 10th century Byzantine issues that circulated into
Russia to current provisional government issues. The exhibit will include:
six platinum coins; 406 silver coins; 172 non-precious metal coins and 177
paper money items. INSIDE ....
....."
&.
_9 ".
• Challenge helps set AlA goals THE CELATOR: 0

A challenge has been made to the Archaeological Institute of America by :'i!'fi

-X ~
an anonymous donor. The donor has agreed to donate $150,000 to the AlA ~~O
provided the AlA can raise an additional $50,000. The $200,00 raised would Point of View II "'~
be used to increase the number of lectures so that all Local Societies of the Book News 1111
81'"
AlA would be able to attend at least three lectures per year.
The society hopes to raise the $50,000 needed by the end of the fiSCal
People VI
year, June 30, 1990. To date the AlA has raised $10,000, or 20% of the Market XII
intended goal. Calendar XXI ,~
1'"
Coin File XX -,
~o

.;:~
• Van Arsdell to autograph books Trivia XX ,...-
- n
o •
Robert Van Arsdell, author of the recently published Celtic Coinage of ~:
Prof. Directory XXXII
Britain, will be at the New York. International to sign copies of his new book
and answer questions concerning Celtic coins. Van Arsdell will be at Table Classllieds XXXIllI
§g
~S
~~
95, the table of J.P. Linzalone & Son, on Saturday, Dec. 9, and Sunday, Dec. ll:0
~
10, from 4:00-6:00 P.M.
.

II
7he Celolor ~
Point of View
Commentary by Wayne G. Sayles
JUau the holidays bring !IOU
joy and cheer and menwries
10 lost duOllflhoui the !lem.
t is paradoxical that in this,
I our holiday season, which is
traditionally a time for expres-
sions of peace and good will, we find it
necessary to reflect upon the more
sinister side of man.
The recent robbery and tragic murder
of Austrian dealer Ernst Lanz comes on
the heels of a year full of crime and
misfortune for those engaged in the
business of trading in numismatics.
Even while the armed robbery was
taking place in Graz, Austria, California
coin dealer Ron Gillio was being
kidnapped in London and also relieved of
a substantial investment in coins. The
story is becoming all too familiar as
coin dealers have become the "target of
choice" for ne'er do wells and
professional thieves.
The old familiar snatch and run
methods are escalating to more direct
and personal attacks which inevitably
lead to human as well as fiscal disaster,
After the Greater NY Show this fall
two dealers were robbed as they left the
city. The same scenario has been
repeated throughout the country as if
there were some training camp for
potential coin thieves. Break-ins are
also on the rise, as Jerry Eisenberg and
Simon Bendall will sadly affum.
The theft of gold bullion or modem
coins may be relatively lucrative since
the material is easily fenced, but one
must wonder what happens to the
ancient coins and antiquities which are
stolen? This field is too specialized and
the market 100 small for a local thief to
"pawn" stolen material. Stolen coins
must either be sold as bullion or
laundered through some unscrupulous
third party.
We cannot overemphasize the
importance of security and common
sense in the handling of coins, both for
dealers and collectors. Complacency
will undoubtedly be rewarded with
misfortune. To minimize risk, one
should take advantage of the services
offered for security at shows; move
directly from the show to your
destination in the most expeditious
manner; and never allow yourself to be
separated from your material for even
the slightest moment. Distraction is
the enemy's greatest weapon.
Furthermore, hip pockets are definitely
not the place for wallets when you are
in the danger zone, as an American
dealer was reminded at COINEX this
year.
Whenever possible, travel in pairs or
groups. Avoid crowded public
transportation. and when using a taxi,
look for the driver's permit on the dash,
as well as the number of the taxi before
putting your bags in the trunk. Believe
it or not, some unfortunates have
watched their coins ride off into the
sunset without them. Ever try
describing a taxi to a police
investigator? The worst places of all
.... ,.. . .. " ...
...
.. .. .. .
The Celator
Letters to the Editor
• • •
Dear Editor:
I'd like to take the opportunity to
lend my support to Dr. Stanley Flegler
and his scientific analysis of the "B lack
Sea Horde" which lead him to conclude
that these coins are not of modem origin
(The Cefator, September 1989). While
I am not in a position to comment on
the authenticity of the horde, I am
concerned about the criticism of Dr.
Flegler's conclu sions voiced in the
October 1989 Celator [The Back Page]
which was based o n a lack of any
"historical grounds" for these coins . In
my view this criticism is a weak
argument. The surviving historical
record of the ancients is fragmentary and
many important details about Ihe social
seem to be the check-in counter and and political state of the world at that
security checkpoints at airports. DON'T
leave your bags with a porter or set
them aside while you search for your
time are simply not known. For
instance, questions remain about the
constitutional reforms of Solon (594
ticket! Also, be cautious about placing BC) which laid the basis for Athenian
your bags on a conveyor where you democracy. Was there really a Council
cannot see the other end. Security of Four Hundred? Was citizen status
officials will perform a private search based purely on land holdings? And
rather than a machine scan if you so how was Solon granted such ·
requesL extraordinary powers in the first place?
There are many other precautions We can only speculate as to the
that o ne might take. but the best
answers. At the Battle of Marathon
precaution is to be slightly paranoid. (490 BC). the Greek victory depended
BELIEVE that someone is ready to heavily on the absence of the Persian
separate you from your assets and use a cavalry from the field of battle on that
little common sense to make their job fateful day. But as to where Ihe Persian
tough. if not impossible. Sometimes,
horsemen went, and why, and whether
as was the case with Ernst Lanz, there they participated in the later stages of
is little you can do to avoid becoming a battle. the historical record provides few
victim, but you CAN reduce the risk. clues. Considering that these two
With this issue we wrap up year examples concern important details of
number three of publication. Next major political events in Athens, the
month will be special for us as we best documented Greek state, it is not at
celebrate our anniversary with a number all surprising that many o ther less
of excellent articles as well as the important details of Greek history do
concurrent release of The Best of The not appear in the sUlViving record.. The
Celator - 1989. This past year we have situation is worse for numismatics.
enjoyed some very entertaining and Such basic questions as the source of
enlightening articles which will be silver for Corinth's voluminous o utput,
reprinted in the more preservable or the source of much of the bronze, and
magazine format. The 1988 edition is even some of the gold. minted by other
still available at $5.95 and the new states is not known with any degree of
edition will be available at $6.95, certainty. And the dating of as well
however, for those who wish to have known a series as the New Style
both, the package price will be $10 tetradrachms of Athens remains
postpaid. controversial. As such a rejection of the
conclusions of as extensive a series of
We enjoyed meeting a number of controlled laboratory tests as those
performed by Dr. Flegler because the
readers at Minneapolis and Chicago this
coins "cannot be substantiated at allan
month, and hope to see many more at
the NY International. We'll be on the historical grounds" is not a very
convincing argument
floor and at the auctions from Friday
through Monday. We all have differing I am not in a position to make a
opinions. but sharing them makes for judgement on the authenticity of the
better understanding. Write and let us Black Sea Horde coins, although I do
hear your point of view! firmly believe that all of the available
Deadline for the January
issue is Friday, December 8
~ Gl!uJu
Postmaster: send address changes to:
P.O. Box 123, Lodi, WI 53555
Phone (608) 592·4684 Fax (608) 592·4682
The Celator is an independent newspaper published on the first day of each month at 226
Palmer Parkway, Lodi, WI. It is circulated internationally through subscriptions and special
distributions. Subscription rates are $24 per year (second dass) within the United States
and Canada, $48 per year to all other addresses (Air Printed Matter). Advertising and
copy deadline is the second Friday of each month. Unsolicited artides and news releases
are welcome. however publication cannot be guaranteed. Second d ass postage, permit
pending. Lodi, WI 53555. Copyright e 1989, Clio's Cabinet.
Wayne G. Sayles ............ Publisher/Editor
Janet Sayles ........ , .......Office Manager
Steven Sayles. , .............Production Asst.
Christine Olson ........ , .....Distribution Asst.
,, .., , .' "
.... December 1989
, .
evidence, whether it be based on modem
testing, archaeologic al findings,
surviving historical documents, and
numismatic considerations of style. etc.,
should be taken into accounL It is quite
possible for experts to weigh the
relative importance of various aspects of
the evidence differently, and even to
reach very different conclusions based on
the same evidence. Such honest
disagreements are common. and are part
of the nature of any scientific endeavor.
However, to casually dismiss work of
obvious thoroughness as that of Dr.
Flegler's as "subatomic particle mumbo
jumbo" (presumably because the
methods are simply not understood) is --
at best -- foolhardy. An opposing
opinion as to the status of the Black Sea
Horde coins must be based on some
reasonable line of argument and not on
ignorance of modern methods of
analysis. More should be expected from
the author of this cri ticism who is
clearly highly knowledgable on
numismatic matters.
Dr. Ronaldl. Kollgaard
Department of Physics
Lafaye/le College
Easton, PA
(Flu! views expressed in 'TIu! Back Page" are
publislu!d as paid advertisement and do not
necessarily reflect the views a/The Celator.
Aithough we are not in a posuion to judge
llu! au/henticuy of tlu! BUlCk Sea Hoard, we
do acknowledge llu! legitimacy and value of
the basic techn~ues used by Dr. Plegler to
aTUJiyze ancient metals.)
•••••
Thank: you for The Cefator and for
any and all articles you can find about
Byzantine coins. Simon [Bendall ,
September. 1989] is right that late
Byzantine coins are the "Cinderellas of
ancient numismatics", but it is only
recently that even early and middle
Byzantine coins have become something
more than pumpkins and mice. The
undiscovered beauty of the Byzantine
series is a wonderful secret that is at last
getting out.
Christopher Connell
New Jersey
(Don't miss Tony Goodwin's comments in
this issue!)
•••••
I would enjoy reading a series on
counterfeiting of ancients; please
publish all you can. Regarding
counterfeits:
Query - If the coins in the British
Museum are the standards by which
others are judged, How were the coins in
the Britis h Museum originally
authenticated?
Jeremiah J. Sullivan
New York
(Many 0/ tlu! coins residing in the trays 0/
the British MuselU7l were collected 100 or
more years ago, when counterfeiting
technology was less per/eci. The
authentication 0/ coins, however, may
require many OIlu!r techn~ues and procedures
in adduion to comparison. We wifJ Iry to
cover tlUs area in afuture article.)
•••••
Please turn to page XXXIIII
The Celator
• ... ..
December 1989 III
.'

Ancient Coins at Christie~

Stater of Lysimachus {323-281 B.C.1 extremely fine

Estimatc:-$2,SOO-3.000

Tetradrachm of Syracuse (510-490 B.C.1 rare,

very finc or better, Estimate-S3.000-4,OOO

to be sold on December 7th at 1:00 p.m.

in our galleries at 502 Park Avenue, NewYork, NY 10022

Featuring a fine selection of Greek and Roman Coins

including Property from the Estate of a Prominent New York Collector
Viewing will be held on December 5th and 6th
from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Catalogues are available by mail fur S17
from Christie's Publications, 21-24 44th Avenue
Long Island City, NY 11101 (718/784-1480)
For further information, please call
James Lamb or Amy Corcoran at 212/546-1056

~
~
CHRISTIES
!III The Celator December 1989

Rizzo work offered

Kolbe/Spink auction important numismatic works
George Frederick Kolbe and Spink &
Son Ltd. London have announced that
their Eighth Annual Joint Public
Auction Sale of Important Numismatic
Books will take place on December
10th. 1989 in New York City. The sale
will be held at Swann Galleries, about a
mile from the Sheraton Centre Hotel
where the New York International
Numismatic Convention is being held
the same weekend. Numbering 949
lots, it will be the largest KoJbe· Spink
auction to date. Included are several
specialized libraries and a plethora of
standard works in a wide variety of
numismatic fields.
Works on ancient coins include a
nearly complete set of Ars Classica
sales (est. $12(Xl.()() as well as a fine
set of Rizzo's sumptuous Moneta greche
della Sicilia, limited to 425 copies. The
estimate on the Rizzo work is
$3500.00. An attractive and complete
set of J. C. Rasche's fourteen part
dictionary of ancient numismatics,
published from 1785 to 1805 with over
eleven thousand pages of text is also
featured, estimated at $850.00. Another
work on ancients sure to attract interest
is a complete set of Imhoof-Blumer's
Die Antiken Munzen Nord-
Griechenlands, estimated at $750.00.
Works on American numismatics
include a fine copy of George H.
Clapp's classic work on the cents of
1798 and 1799, estimated to sell for
$600.00. The sale also contains a fine
selection of important works on Islamic
and Indian numismatics.
Works on medieval and modem
numismatics include a particularly
pleasing example of the 1597 first
edition of Adam Berg's rare New Muntz
Buech, estimated at $1000.00. William
Blade's 1883 Numismata Typographica,
estimated at $500.00, is a fine
association copy from the library of
Theodore De Vinne, co-founder of the
Groller Club and a distinguished
American printer. A highlight in the
field of Danish numismatics is the
unpublished two volume work by
Ramus and Devegge on medieval
Danish coins, complete with the plates.
A copy of the text volume alone
brought £520 in a 1987 Spink London
For collectors and dealers
•
Firm publishes inexpensive new series
Laurion Numismatics of Nashua,
New Hampshire has recently announced
its entry into the field of publishing.
The fmn has established a new affiliate
called Laurion Publishing to handle the
writing, production and marketing of a
new line of books on the subjects of
coin collecting and dealing in the coin
market.
sale. The two volume set is estimated
at $1000.00
Six volumes of Aloiss Heiss'
magnum opus on renaissance medals are
featmed (estimated from $300.00 for a
single volume to $1250.00 for a lot of
four volumes), along with the weighty
Hill (est. $750.00) and De Ricci (est.
$750.00) tomes on the Dreyfus
Collection, now at the National gallery
of Art in Washington, D.C. Among
rare and important works on German
numismatics, a complete set of KOhler's
Munz-Belustigung (est. $3000.00) and
1m Hors two volume Sammfung eines
nurnbergischen Munz-Cabinets (est.
$1500.00) are among the highlights. A
fine set of Christian Lange's 1908 & .
1912 two volume work on the coins and
medals of Schleswig-Holstein, estimated
Laurion president, David Van Meter,
said that this venture is a logical
outgrowth of the firm's established
ancient coin dealership. "Prom my
experience in the business," said Van
Meter, 'Tve witnessed a desperate need
for comprehensive, yet affordable books,
that answer the many questions posed
by new and experienced collectors
alike." "Many of the books on the
market, are either too simple, and
therefore of little value, or too technical
at $1000.00 is another noteworthy
German work as is a complete set of
Lochner's Samlung merkwurdiger
Medaillen, eight volumes 1737-1745,
estimated at $1000.00. A fine set of
van Loon's classic work on Dutch
medals (est. $1500'()0) is present in the
preferred French edition.
The sale promises to be one of the
most memOrable yet in the Kolbe-Spink
series. Copies of the catalogue may be
ordered by sending $5.00 to George
Frederick Kolbe, P. O. Drawer 3100,
Crestline, CA 92325. Tel: (714) 338-
6527. Pax: (714) 338-6980. A special
hardbound copy, available after the sale,
may be ordered by sending $35.00. A
prices realized list is included with
orders for both the regular and hardbound
catalogues, to be sent after the sale.
extensively illustrated and filled with
practical and useful information about
the coins and their values. Included in
the book is a history of the Roman
Empire and biographies of the most
famous emperors. Complete with a
pricing guide, the book lists for $14.95.
Future titles to be released in the
upcoming months include a companion
volume, Handbook of Roman Coins, a
sister book, Collecting Greek Coins,
and a variety of similar books on other

BOOKSnn and difficult for most people to use."

Van Meter said. "Most of all, they are
simply too expensive!" claimed Van
topics.

To assist coin dealers in their own

Meter.
make great Christmas presents Each of Laurion's new books will be
a complete guide to the covered subject,
and now is the time to buy them filled with illustrations, pricing, and
other valuable information, but will
ANTHONY, Collecting Greek Colns,301p., 500 iIIus. only cost between $14.95 to $19.95.
OP ....... _.. _...................................... _.................................. $14.75 This is in comparison with established
classical numismatic reference books
CARRADICE & PRICE, Colnag9 In th9 Greek World, 160 p.,
250 iIIus......... __ ................................. __ .. _............. ....... .......... $ 2 7 .00 that sell for $50.00 or more. Van Meter
is confident that due to their valuable
CARSON, Mints, Dies, Currency, 336p. + 23 pI. OP... .. ...... $29.00 contents and low price, Laurion
Publishing's books will quickly become
CASEY & REECE, CoIns and the Archaeologist standard refereoce guides.
306 p.+ 8 pl., maps and charts .... ... ...... ........... ..................... .......... .$35 . 00 Drawing on the firm's extensive
experience in Roman coins, the first
DAVIS and KRAAV, The Hellenistic Kingdoms, Portrait publication to be released is Collecting
Coins and History. 296 p. Photos in text & full page plates .... .. .. $39.00 Roman Coins, written by Michael 1.
Kiely with the assistance of David Van
HOBERMAN, Th9 Art of Coins and Their Photography
Meter himself. The book was released
571 outstanding photos, 329 in color, plus drawings ..................... ..$95.00
on November 15, 1989. Designed as an
JENKINS, Coins of Greek Sicl/y. 31 p. 17 plates. OP .............. $9.75 introduction to the hobby, it is
sales and marketing efforts, Laurion
Publishing will be issuing a sales guide
entitled, How to Sell Collectibles, in
the spring of 1990. As Van Meter said,
"There is a real need out there for books
and other products that will help both
the purchasers and sellers of coins and
other collectibles. Since our books are
a complete and comprehensive guide to
each subject. and because they are
written in an entertaining manner, they
attract new people to the hobby of
collecting coins. Each book is a
catalyst to the start or expansion of a
coin collection. As such, these books
help dealers grow new collectors and
help these new collectors enter the
hobby with confidence." David Van
Meter can be reached at Laurion
Numismatics, 427-3 Amherst Street,
Suite 206C, Nashua, NH 03063.

NEWEll, Royal Greek Portrait Coins.

1937 edition. 125 p. OP ..... ....... .......................... ....... .. ... .... ....... $19_00

WRITE FOR FREE:

French publishers print
• Fixed price catalog of quality coins .
• Auction of medium-priced corns .
• Catalogs, books on Greek, Roman,
catalog of Roman coins
& Byzantine corns. French publishers Sabine Bourgey
and Georges Depeyrot have recently
published a catalogue of Roman
Please add $4 for postage Republican coins entitled La Republique
U.S.P.s. Special Handling $2 additional Romaine, Fonds Bourgey.
Included in the book is a catalog of
the coins auctioned by Emile Bourgey.
THOMAS P. MCKENNA The catalog lists the coins auctioned
since the firm was founded in 1895 in
P.O. Box 1356·F • Fort Collins, CO 80522 Paris. The book lists approximately
303-226-5704 95% of the coins of the period.
In addition to the numismatic
information about the coins, historical
background is included, along with dates
of auction and legends on the coins.
The fmn plans to publish a series of
10 books, with 3 on Roman Coins, 3
on Greek coins, one on Celtic, one on
Byzantine, and one on Carolingian
coinage.
The book is written in French, and is
available for 270 French francs ($41
U.S.). For ordering information contact
Sabine Bourgey, 7 Rue Drouot, 75009
Paris, France.
The Celator v

Numismatic FineArts

INTERNATIONAL. INC

announces
Winter 1989
Mail Bid Sale

Amphipolis
AR tetradrachm

Arsinoe II Drusus
A V octodrachm AE sestertius

Trajan
AVaureus

featuring the coins of the late

Dr. Paul Stadler Szego
Author, scholar and long-time collector

Sale closes Thursday, December 14, 1989

Catalogue now available
Our annual mail-bid sale features over 2,000 coin and literature lots. Among the numismatic highlights are a run of
Ptolemaic octodrachms, selections from the Asyut hoard and an outstanding representation of Greek silver.
The literature section lists a splendid selection of antiquarian and modem volumes including a complete set of the 1794
edition of Eckhel's Doctorina Numorum Veterem and an original of Rizzo's Monete Greche della Sicilia. All material
may be viewed at our offices from November 6th by appointment. Coin lots only will be available for inspection at the
New York International Coin Fair, December 9,10 and 11, 1989.
Submit your bids early!
~-------------------------------------------------------
CE
o Please send me the Winter 1989 mail-bid catalogue.

Numismatic Fine Arts

INTERNATIONAL, I N C ,
NAME
10100 Santa Monica Blvd. ADDRESS
6th Floor
Los Angeles, CA 90067 CITY _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _____
Telephone: (213) 278- 1535 ZIP _ _ _ __
STATE
My collecting interests are: _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ __
VI The Celator December 1989

Lanz was principal cataloger for
the Numismatik Lanz auctions,
known worldwide. and had worked
with coins since joining his father's
finn in 1962. His bromer, Hubert
Lanz. heads Numismatik Lanz·
Munchen in Munich, Gennany and
his father, Hermann, is an historic
figure in the world coin market.
Lanz is survived by both
parents, wife Eva. three children and
four brothers.
Ernst Hermann Lanz
the He
SAN celebrates 20th
anniversary of journal
The Society for Ancient
Numismatics recently celebrated its 20th
anniversary. SAN was founded in 1969,
and has published their 20-page journal
four times per year.
An editorial in the 20th anniversary
issue, September, 1989, describes the
founding of SAN: "Detemtined to give
the United States and Canada a quality
and fumly based publication dedicated
exclusively to the learning side of
ancient and medieval numismatics, a
group of concerned Southern California
collectors, students and dealers, some of
whom had been membe~ of the Ancient
Coin Club of America, met in Los
Angeles early in 1969. This group was
convinced that to remain independent the
publication must be sponsored by a
dues-supported organization which
would not be subject to the influence of
any numismatic firm or publication
house."
The Society for Ancient
Numismatics publishes the journal four
times annually, at a cost of $10 per
year. Information may be obtained by
contacting SAN secre tary Beate Rauch
at P.O. Box 2830, Los Angeles, CA
90078-2830.

Ernst Hermann Lanz, forty-four

year old numismatist of the
Austrian fum Numismatik Lanz-
Gillio robbed returning
Oraz. died on October 13 of fatal
injuries inflicted during a robbery
from COINEX in London
occurring October 10 at the Oraz Santa Barbara coin dealer Ronald J.
office. Gillio was abducted and robbed while
returning home from COINEX week in
London on October 14.
According to Gillio, three suspects
impersonating police officers ordered his
taxi to stop en route to Heathrow airport
from the show. The suspects informed
Gillio that he was under arrest,
handcuffed him, and placed him and his
luggage in the alleged police car.
Gillio told authorities the suspects
then drove him around for 90 minutes
interrogating him before taking him to
the country where he was released
unharmed. The suspects took aU of
GiUio's luggage, which included his
coin inventory, documents, and personal
belongings.
Persons with any information
concerning the robbery have been asked
to contact Gillio at 1013 State St.,
Santa Barbara, CA.

1900 - 1990 ANS helps students to

COMING TO AMERICA attribute ancient coins
The ANS library and late Roman containing a coin from the Bastien
We celebrate our 90th Anniversary with more sales and more coins generously made available by Dr. · collection.
material on offer than ever before. For the first time we will Pierre Bastien provided an opportunity "The coin inside is clean - she
have a table at the New York International Coin Show. for practice in coin identification and announced· which put you one step
Come and see how we can help you. attribution for Manhattanville College ahead of schol ars working in
Selling - we will be holding 26 sales in 1990, and Ancient Coins will and New York University students. excavations. Use the library, use your
feature in at least four of these. An auction in London has many After a general orientation and tour of epigraphical notes, and give a report on
the library given by the Director Francis your coin at the end of the session."
advantages. Coins and medals can be left at our table for D. Campbell, Luciana Csaki, of the They did. A comment from one of the
future sales - and if you do, we will offer you Department of Classical Civilization at students summed it all up: "I did not
a 2.5% discount on standard commission rates. Manhattanville College handed to each know that a little coin could say so
Buying - keep in touch with our sales by subscribing to OUf catalogues. student an unm arked envelope much."
You don't need to be in London - bid by mail.
---------------------------
I wish subscribe Auction catalogues for 1990
to to
ANCIENT COINS, Including Greek, Roman, Byzantine & Islamic $40 0
Chemistry of metals
ALL COINS - $75 0 IllSTORlCAL MEDALS - $40 0 WAR MEDALS - $40 0
please tick box Professor gives lecture
Name (Block Caps)................. .. ..................... . On Thursday, October 26th, Dr. Ted talk was well received by the audience.
Molitor, a retired coUege chemistry
Address ................ • •... • •.. . • • ...•... • •.. .• • . ..••... professor, gave a presentatio n to the Each month the TCACC offers its
Twin City Ancient Coin Club members a lecture of interest to both
(TCACq entitled: Chemistry of ancient coin collectors and historians.
. .... ..... ... . . ..... ..... Zip......................... . . . Metals as Related to Ancient Coins . The club meets on the fourth Thursday
Dr. Molitor brought up many of every month at Immanuel Lutheran
f enclose check/cash; Please charge my CREDIT CARD for $........ . . 'interesting wrinkles concerning the Church, 104 Snelling Avenue South,
composition of ancient coins and his St. Paul, Minnesota at 7:30 P.M.
Name (as on card), ...................................... •.
Card No . . .............. • ..... Expiry Date ............ .. . .• .

Signed. . .. .............................................. . Reader Response

Glendining's, lOl New Bond Slreet, london WIY9lG.
Tel, 01-493 2445 .Telex, 298855 Bien G . Fax, 01-491 9181.
LONDON· PARIS· NEW YORK . GENEVA · BRUSSELS· ZURICH ·lliE HAGUE
Glendining's - affiliated to Phillips, the International Fine Art Auctioneers.
is essential to the success of any publication. We are sincerely
interested in your corrunents, criticisms, suggestions and desires.
Share your news, views and observations with othe~ who enjoy
the fascination of antiquity as much as you do. Write to:
The Celator - P.O. Box 123 - Lodi, WI 53555
The Celalor December 1989 VII

MONTHLY FEATURES
CLASSICAL NUMISMATIC AUCTIONS, LTD.
1990 Auction Schedule

May 3. 1990
Sale Xl
Public Sale in New York
TOP QUALrry
Greek & Roman
CONSIGNMENT DEADLINE MARCH 1, 1990

Jyly 24. 1990

C1.ASS1C..u.. NU11.1.8:J"'l.A.TlC L1.T1::RAru:R..1:.
SALE II
A sale of literature relating to the field of
numismatics .
CONSIGNMENT DEADLINE MAY I, 1990
February 28. 1990 December 6. 1990
Sale X September 27. 1290 Sale XIII
Mail Bid Sale Sale XII Public Sale in New York
Ancient Greek. Greek lmperial. Ancient Greek, Greek Imperial, TOP QUALITY
Roman Republican and Imperial. Roman Republican and Imperial. Greek & Roman
Byzantine, Byzantine, CONSIGNMENT DEADLINE OCTOBER 1, 1990
Medieval European and British, Medieval European and British,
Literature Literature PLAN ON SELLING YOUR COLLECTION
CONSIGNMENT DEADLINE DECEMBER 15, 1989 CONSIGNMENT DEADLINE JULY 1, 1990 AT ONE OF THESE IMPORTANT SALES

SHOULD YOU BE SUBSCRIBING TO OUR

On Coins and Medals, &.
Of the many hobbies thal appeal to a refined taste, to the mind
nurtured in the love of ancient and modern times, and to the
cultured intellect which delights in unravelling the mysteries
and the oft tangled skeins ofmytlwlogy and history, no pursuit
can claim priority of interest or fascifUllion over the study and
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These small but intensely interesting and truly veracious
monuments of both ancient and medieval times place before the
student and collector at a glance something vividly characteristic
of the period in which they were issued -
it may be the finely chiseJled features
of some god or goddess ofmytlwlogy, some long forgotten customs
of a now extinct people, or the authentic portrait
of some ancient conqueror of half a world.
All these things, therefore, appeal to the well educated and
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-1902, The Connoisseur. Volume III
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 .. ..
viii The Celalor December 1989

Artifacts appear
Search for pharoahs' resting places continues
by David Liebert
The announcement recently of the
discovery of new tombs of officials in
the ancient necropolis of Saqqara in
Egypt started me thinking about a
question which has always intrigued me.
That is. whether or not all of the tombs
of the pharaohs have been found by
archaeologists? Is it possible with all
of the excavation of the last hundred
years that as yet undiscovered and
perhaps even more importantly,
unlooled sepulchers remain to be found
beneath the eternal sands of Egypt? The
answer to this intriguing question, it
may surprise you to learn, is yes.
Although we can only speculate, of
course, on what the future might have
in store for Egyptologists, an
examination of the known facts should
lead us to conclude that great discoveries
may yet be made. Consider what we
know of the burial practices of the kings
of ancient Egypt. During the New
Kingdom most burials took place in the
Valley of the Kings .near Thebes. It is
true that nothing of consequence has
been found in the Valley of the Kings
since Howard Carter discovered
Tutankhamen's tomb in 1922 and indeed
perhaps nothing remains. But consider
this, there is still a large amount of land
in the valley which has never been
explored. Howard Carter spent many
years and a rather sizable amount of
Lord Camavon's money in his search for
Tut's tomb, and in the end he discovered
it more or less by accident. As far as I
know no one has mounted a similar
expedition since and most authorities
would agree it would have little chance
of success. But how can we be sure that
the valley contained only 58 to mbs'?
The obvious answer is that we can't. GUE.% We MAY AS WtLL EYO HOME..··
The Roman Egyptian priest-historian
Manetho left us a list of pharaohs but CAUSE \HER€. SUR€. CAN 'T 6E AN~
can we be sure it is accurate. And even MORE 0IRAMIVS AROUND HERE ...
if it is, all of the pharaohs on it are not
accounted for as yet Might some of
them still lie hidden in some secre t
recess of the valley? Perhaps. Or
perhaps, aware of the tomb robbery
rampant in the valley during the New
Kingdom, might some of them have
arranged to have been buried elsewhere?
Perhaps somewhere else in the desert
near Thebes? You can be sure the
modem decendants of the tomb robbers
are still out there looking. Are they
fmding anything? They aren't t.alk:ing,
-but intriguing items appear on the
market from time to time. Nothing to
make one suspect the secret tomb of a
pharao h has been discovered. but the
search is obviously not entirely fruitless
or nothing new would appear.
Nor is the great necropolis of Thebes
the only resting place of nobility in
Egypt In early times Saqqara was the
resting place of choice, and contrary to
popular belief it was never completely
abandoned. through the whole course of
ancient Egyptian history. Might new
discoveries be made here or elsewhere in .: .
Egypt'? Again the answer is that it is
entirely posible but impossible to and if well enough hidden just perhaps it and new and stanling revelatiom can and
assess the probability. If a new royal remains untouched. One thing is probably will be made in the future. It's
tomb were discovered, it would probably obvious, however, the book has not one of the things that makes
be empty as most were plundered in been closed on Egyptological discovery, archaeology so f~cinating.
antiquity. But, if it hasn't been
discovered yet, it must be well hidden,

Anderson offers coins from

The Joseph Brackett Collection
Time Machine Company Joel Anderson has released his
Ancients, Etc. List #86AN. The list
is alWays eager to aid beginning collectors with moderately includes a wide variety of Greek,
priced coins and antiquities. Calf David Lieberldirect
Roman, Byzantine, Indian, Chinese and
to discuss your interests and needs.
Islamic coins. Featured on the list are
over 50 pieces from the Joseph Brackett
Collection of Roman Egyptian coinage,
as well as a good selection of Roman
Republic silver. Prices on the list range
from $2 to $200.
The list is available without charge
from Joel Anderson, PO Box 3016,
Merced. CA 95344.

Say you saw it in The Celator

A VERY RARE FIND

An EGYPTIAN ROYAL-BLUE GLAZED
ROYAL-CARTOUCHE AMULET
of
QUEEN NEFERTITI.
EI-Amarna, c. 1360 B.c.
Of cartouche form, inscribed with the throne-name of this famous queen,
Nefemefruaten-Nefertiti, literally, "The Beautiful One is Come."
Just in time forthe holdiays! We can offer an excellent group of Holy Land
pottery vessels ranging from the Bronze Age to the Roman Period. All are in Small suspension hole at top-<:enter and two more at base. 19mm.
EF condition and are of better shapes, many with handles. They range from 3"
to 5" and all are intact. These lovely momentosof our biblical past make great
Intact and Vcry Rare.
holiday gifts, so order last, as we only have a ~mited supply. This may very well be your only chance to ever acquire an antiquity
We offer them on a first come first served basis for only directly associated with this famous queen, and at a reasonable price.
$100 ~ach, three for $250, Authenticity unconditionally guaranteed.
We have a super special for holiday giving. Egyptian JO-day return privilege.
muHi-color mummy bead necklaces. 8" @ $35 each. SI200, shipping incl. Offers considered.
We have many more interesting antiquities and ancient coins in stock. " you
are not on our mailing Jist, you are missing some of the best buys in ancient art. CLASSICA ANTIQUITIES
Send for your free catalogue today. For more information contact: Archaeological Art
Post Office Box 509
The Time Machine Co. Syracuse, New York 13201
Tele. (315) 687-0036 or 457-7249
P. O. Box 282, Flushing Station,
Queens, NY 11367 Ancient coins and antiquities. Fixed price lists issued.
Our 23rd Year
(718) 544-2708
The Celator December 1989 Villi

Royal~Athena Galleries
Select Works of Fine Art from the Ancient Wodd

EGYPTIAN OLD KINGDOM LIMESTONE HEAD ROMAN EARLY IMPERIAL MARBLE FEMALE BUST
of a male with short wig Ca. 30 - 50 A.D. 15" (38 em.)
VIh - Vlth Dynasty (2494 - 218 1 B.C.) Excavated from the Acropolis at
Height 4 114M(10.8 em.) Carmona, Sevilla, Spain, ca. 1900 A.D.

Royal-Athena now sells more select works of ancient art
than any other gallery, having tripled its sales this past
year. We attribute t his tapid growth to our thirty years of
internationally acknowledged expertise and connoisseur~
ship, the desire to exhibit the widest range of ancient
works of art, currently over 30CXJ objects, at the best
possible prices, in an open and friendly atmosphere.
W e are currently selling toover 600 collectors, colleagues
and museums in 17 countries. May we add your name?
Send for our FREE fu ll-color 20-page brochure.
The fo llowing publications are also available:
ART OF THE ANCIENT WORLD, Vol. IV (1985),
192 color plates . . ................... $15 .00
THE AGE OF CLEOPATRA (1988),
29 color plates . ............ ........ . ... 2.00
GODS & MORTALS: Bronzes of the Ancient W orld
( 1989), 49 color plates ...... . .. . ... . ... 4.00

W e are proud to be spmsors of the following exhibitions at the Narural History Museum of Los Angeles County:
THE RRST EGYPTIANS - now extended t hrough November 5
C ARTIlAGE: A MOSAIC OF ANC IENT TUNISIA - September 9 to January 7

royal-atllena galleries new yor/c - beverly hills

Jerome M. Eisenbera:. Ph.D., Director Established 1942

153 Ea:st 57th St., Nt'W York, N.Y. 10022 36, Platt des Antiquaires, 125 E. 57th 51., 332 North Beverly Dr., Bcvttly Hills, Ca. 90210
TtL (212) 355-2034 Fax.: (212) 6S8-0412 Nt'W York, N.Y. 10022 Tel.: (212) 593-1193 Tel.: (213) SSQ..II99 Fax: (213) 550-1395
Monday-Saturday, 10 to 6 Monday·Saturday, II to 6 Monday·Saturday, 10106

Royal-Athena at Nahan Galleries (SoHo) Royal-Athena at B.A. Staby Ltd.

}81 W. Broadway, N.Y N.Y lOOll S Cavendish Square, London W 1M OAJ, En&llnJ
rei.: (2ll)966-B13 Tel. (44)1-631·3707 Mondav F Jay, 9:30 to 5
Monday· Frida 0 to 6 v·Su~ ~ v, 11 to 7 (Sm:lforafreetopyOl"Ant JlaesForllm)

.. . . ... '" ~ ..... " .

 The Celator gecember 1989

Point and counterpoint

Appreciation in value not limited solely to rarities
(fixcerpt talu" from Clark's Awe/lon: 1176
Sale Carolog.)
by Dan Clark
During 1989 Dr. Arnold Saslow has
been running ads in The Celator, at
considerable expense for a full page
spread, touting the wisdom of coUecting
and investing in top quality and high
priced coins. His poinl is well taken, '
that if you want to invest, or at least
make money over the years, top quality
coins are an almost guaranteed vehicle
for increases, as well as a fount of
pleasure whenever you show those
beautiful coins around.
However, he has, so- far as I am '
concerned, quite misstated the situation
with reference to low priced and
common coins. Though he is quite
right that some of the commonest worst
condition corns have hardly increased in .
value. he is aparentJy unimpressed at the
continuous and over the years
considerable appreciation in average ,
bronze coins. Though their amounts are
modest, the percentage of appreciation
is equal to anything the highest priced
gold or silver has accomplished,
excepting the cx:casional "blockbuster".
There are equally tremendous increases
in a very few of the bronzes,
"blockbusters" in their own field of
modest priced coins. A look at any of !
the standard pricing guides will clearly ~
bear out the point I am making.
Whether it be Greek, Roman, or
Byzantine bronzes.
For instance:
1970 Seaby 1988 Sear somethimes encountered, can give a
fascinating testimony to many things
Republican silver happening in those far gone days. To a
Egnatuleia I #247 limited extent this is true also of gold
#297 £6 in VF £55 in gVF and silver - but only to a limited extent
Collecting ancient coins, either high
Trajan As, emperor #1018 priced gold and silver, but also low
gallop r #918 £7.5 in F £100 in VF priced bronzes, can be personally
rewarding both in tenns of inner
Caracalla Sestertius, satisfaction and in terms of appreciation
Security stanrung #1968 over time. All three metals have
#1868 £15 in F £175 in VF designs which help us understand what
was happening in those days. A
Probus Antoninianus #3377 collector is hardly without interest in
#3277 £1.75 in F £20 in VF monetary appreciation, but it is
secondary to the thrill of being
Constantine I AE 3/altar #3870 connected with genuine ancient artifacts
#3770 £1.5 in F £20 in VF and thus with ancient history. To an
extent, a collector can "have his cake
Honorius AE 4IVictory I, #4258 and eat it too", for his historical objects
capt. #4158 £2.25 in F £20 in VF over the years will appreciate in value
even as they grow (hopefully) in
But there is something else to be meaning.
said for collecting cornmon and I have no quarrel with those whose
modestly priced bronzes. For many of major aim is monetary appreciation, but
us, they are genuine history which we I count myself among those whose
can handle firsthand with our own primary interest is study and inner
fingers. There is something of both satisfaction; for me the cheap bronzes
pride and personal satisfaction in simply are the most fun precisely because there
owning a piece of what is a prime are untold stories in abundance in even
centerpiece of historical evidence. the junkiest accumulation. And, as you
Bronze coins circulated much more than might expect, the more I know, the
I'
gold, and also exhibit a great variety of
more stories I find. There will never be
different reverses compared to gold or an end to "the search", though there may
silver in most centuries, making them be a limit to the funds making it
the ancient common man's newspaper, possible. However, for the limited
TV, and radio all wrapped up in one. investment I am able to make I can
Going a step further, careful obtain many coins as opposed to only a
examination of overstrikes, very few, and in those many coins there
countermarks, and similar items often are various oddities of striking,
variations of design, different purities of
metal, etc. - all in identical issues. In a
very few cases I wi.ll find rarities, but
almost always it is the oddity and
unusual variation which occupies my
attention. My coins will not spend
most of their time in a bank vault, but
will be at home with me as I study
them over and over. I have
accumulations of numbers of types,
seeking through observation of far·ge-
numbers to find possible different
treatments of a common subject. Such
searching requires only a little monetary
investment, which I can afford, but it
provides great amounts of opportunity
for discovery, which I like.
Probably it is a good thing that we
all do not see eye to eye, or seek exactly
the same things from life. There is a
place for investment, and a place for
research and simple observation. While
a few can both invest in expensive coins
and do research in them, most of us are
not so fortunate. It is a good thing
there are plenty of bronzes in the low
price ranges on which we can spend our
time. It is even nicer to know that, so
far as percentage of appreciation is
concerned, our coins will do just as well
as the average gold or silver coin of
much higher price, just as likely to
return us a profit when we sell as
almost any of the highly touted
investment vehicles. It has been thus
for years, and I expect it will continue
to be true for many more. Collectors,
or investors, choose ... .I hope -many of
you are able to have as much fun with
your acquisitions as I have had.

NEW FINDS....
Miinzen nnd Medaillen AG
For 45 years
we have been serving
collectors of Ancient Coins ...
and we would like
to serve you too!

.Monthly lIIustrated Fixed Price Lists·

• Public Sales • Appraisals • On a recent trip to Israel I acquired an interesting antiquity which I
• Large Stock in All Price Ranges • would like to share with your readers .

• Buying and Selling. The picture above is of a bronze Phalera which was found near
Bethlehem with other objects associated with the Tenth Legion.
The piece in my collection is 80 nun in diameter and consists of an
eagle standing on a capital with a thunderbolt and palm branch.
The phalera has a ring on its back indicating that it was worn on
Please contact: top of a Centurion's gannent or armour. The rings were probably
held fIrmly in place by metallic splinters.
Miinzen und Medaillen AG
P. O. Box 3647 • Malzgasse 2S If any of your readers have some opinions as to this object, I
would appreciate their comments.
CH - 4002, Basel, Switzerland DOfUJfd R. Simon
Tel. (061) 23 7S 44 New York
The Celator December 1989 ............. XI · .

ANNOUNCES

AN IMPORTANT PUBLIC AUCTION OF

ANCIENT AND FOREIGN COINS
To be held in conjunction with
THE NEW YORK INTERNATIONAL
NUMISMATIC CONVENTION

DECEMBER 7, 8,1989
At the Sheraton Centre Hotel
Seventh Avenue at 52nd Street
New York City

featuring: Selections from the Dr. Michael Bryce

Collection, the Alfred R. Globus Collection,
and the Estate of Amon G. Carter, Jr.

• Over 100 lots of Ancient Greek, Roman and Byzantine Gold and
Electrum coins, including an excellent group of Roman Imperial Aurei.

• A wide-ranging offering of choice Greek silver, including an exceptional,

specialized collection of 5th Century Syracusan tetradrachms.

• Rare Roman Imperatorial denarii, including a Fourree Ides of March.

• Choice Roman Imperial silver and bronze.

Profusely Illustrated Catalogue

Available Now!
The price of $10
includes Prices Realized. OVER 500 LOTS OF ANCIENT COINS!

.--------------------,
I STACK'S I
I 123 West 57th Street I
I New York. N.Y. 10019 I
<::1 I Enclosedpleasefind$lOfortheDecemb~r7. 8.1989 I
I Auction Sale Catalogue and Prices Realized (after sale). I
. (212) 582-2580
• FAX (212) 245-5018 I Name :

~) 123
.

New
Telex 666125 (UW)
West 57th Street
NY 10019
York.
IL ____________________
Street
I City . State Zip _ _ ~
I

America's Oldest and Largest Rare Coin Dealer and Leading Coin Auctioneers for Over SO Years.
··XII
Art and the Market
New York International
Auctions feature impressive variety of ancients
The first week of December promises
to be an action packed week in New
York City as no less than six auctions
arc scheduled before and during the New
York International Numismatic
Convention.
Kicking off the marathon on
Thursday, December 7 is Victor England
with Classical Numismatic Auctions
sale IX at the Sheraton City Squire, 7th
avenue and 52nd street. Herb Kriendler
will wield the hammer at 10:00 A.M. in
the fifth floor Jefferson Room. The
auction includes 607 lots of quality
Greek, Roman and Byzantine coins in
all metals.
Year-round program
Glendining's hails 90th anniversary
In 1990 G1endining's will be
celebrating their 90th anniversary. The
firm provides a service with a year-round
program of auctions, and of these some
are obv iously more imponant than
others . The better English and ancient
coins are sold in good quarterly sales.
Historical medals, numismatic books
and trade tokens feature in at least three
sales each year, while war medals and
decorations, which represent a 25% slice
of the company's turnover, are also sold
in four major quarterly sales. Around
these feature sales the company also
holds a series of lower value general
sales, and these now include Saturday
"Collector" sales of war medals. The
catalogues are produced well in advance,
the more important containing many
BOSTON...
Ancient and Foreign Coin
Mecca of The Northeast!
BAY STATE COIN SHOW
March 16, 17, 18, 1990
November 16, 17, 18, 1990
"57" PARK PLAZA HOTEL
Room reservations: 617·48Z·1800
Over 24 years ...
"Ne:w England's Largest C oin ShQ,v!!!"
Chairman: Ed Aleo
Box 400, Winchester, MA 01890
~ 617-729-9677 A choice EF ($300). a large bronze
Advertising in
7Ae CeIoIor...
Full Page 1/2 Page
$390 P.O. Box 123
$195
discounts ;..
L __________ for__
multiple insenions L 0 d ·I, WI
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At 1:00 P.M. Christie's will auction
coins from the estate of a prominent
New York collector at their 502 Park
Avenue galleries. The sale includes
choice Greek: and Roman issues.
At 2:00 P.M. Harlan I. Berk and
Victor England team up to present a
specialized auction of very rare and
choice Byzantine bronze coins. 368 lots
are offered, many virtually unobtainable
prior to this offering. The sale will be
held in the same room as England's
earlier auction.
Stack's will offer world coins in their
first session of a two day sale starting at
6:30 Thursday evening at the Sheraton.
plates of illu strations. Clients the
world over should receive them three
weeks in advance of the sale date. Each
catalogue co ntain s a form for
"Absentee" or "Mail Order" bids. The
1990 catalogue subscription rates offer
tremendous value for money. and Daniel
Fearon is proud of the ever improving
standards of Glendining's calalogues.
Daniel Fearon will be attending the
New York International Coin Show
[December 8th - II th], where
Glendining's will have a table. He will
be able to answer questions on all
aspects of the service that Glendining's
New list published
Imperial caters to classical coin collectors
Imperial Coins and Antiquities (ICA)
is the latest in a growing list of firms
that deal eXClusively in coins and
artifacts of the ancient world. including
Greece, Rome and Byzantium.
ICA will focus initially on the
Roman Imperial series and choice trade
coins of the Greek world, according to
President David S. Michaels.
"We intend to cater to the needs of
both novice and experienced collectors,"
Michaels said. "Our initial illustrated
price list, which will be issued Nov. 17,
1989, will contain coins ranging in
price from $20 to $2,000, virtually all
of them in Very Fine or Extra Fine
condition."
Just Makes Good Sense
$6.50
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the kind of targeted coverage your
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1/4 Page
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Harmer Rooke will auction 236 lots
of Ancient Greek and Roman coins
starting at 1:00 P.M. Friday, December
8, at their sixth fl oor gallery on the
comer of 5th avenue and 57th street.
The sale is billed as "The Decade Sale"
and is an unreserved auction.
The ancients portion of the Stack's
auction will be held at the Sheraton
hotel on the evening of December 8,
starting at 6:30 P.M. The sale, with
over 500 lots of ancients, includes a
collection of Syracusan tetradrachms as
well as coins from several famous
collections.
The New York International is a
can offer to both buyer and vendor. In
January Glendining's will have a table at
the European Coin Convention in Basel
[January 26th - 27thl. The increasing
market in ancient coins centres very
much on the European market, and this
is another area where Glendining's hopes
to expand.
For further information on
Glendining's Auction Sale Calendar,
subscription service, or on the coin
shows they will be attending, contact
Daniel Fearon at: G1endining's, 101
New Bond Street, London WI Y 9LG,
England.
Highlights of the list include:
several silver denarii of the first 12
Caesars, including a set of the Emperor
Augustus featuring the highly sought-
after Capricorn and bull reverses; an EF
denarius of Tiberius with the extremely
scarce "quadriga" reverse, which depicts
Tiberius in a four-horse chariot, for
$485; a brass sestertius of the infamous
Emperor Gaius Caligula in VF
condition for $1,450; a type set of the
Emperor 1ulian II "The Apostate,M one
of the most romantic and colorful
fjgures in Roman history including a
gold solidus of Julian as Augustus in
good VF ($ 1.645), a silver siliqua in
per column inch
;....;._..;...;.
.~· ~·~·~·~·~·I ·
The Ce·l ator
Saturday, Sunday, Monday show this
year and the weekend is sure to be a
busy one. Saturday evening at 6:00
P.M., Superior Galleries will hold the
first of three sessions offering world
coins at the Sheraton. Their second
session will be held Sunday morning
starting at 9:00 A.M. Also on Sunday,
the eighth Kolbe/Spink book auction
will be held at Swann Galleries.
beginning at 1:00 P.M., featuring
duplicates from the libraries of Stack's
and the American Numismatic Society.
The third session of the Superior sale
will feature a massive array of quality
ancients, over 1, 100 lots. from the
1asha Heifetz collection, beginning at
6;()() P.M.
The NY International more or less
wraps up the 1989 public auction
season and provides an outstanding
forum for collectors and dealers in all
areas of world coinage. It has been very
successful in drawing dealers and
collectors from around the world who
are interested in ancients and is a show
looked forward to by many.
Majorina (AEI) in EF with superb style
and surfaces ($525), and a small bronze
AE3 in VF ($ 1 10), (The complete set is
$2,300); two "owl" tetradrachms of
ancient Athens, both choice aEF, for
$875 each; and a tetradrachm of the
Macedonian Icing Philip II, father of
Alexander the Great, in aEF for $1,050.
ICA will specialize in assembling
type sets of the Roman emperors and
Imperial ladies, Michaels said. The fllTll
also will service want lists and assist in
assembling investment portfolios.
ICA plans to offer four illustrated
price lists per year initially, with the
two-year goal of expanding to one every
other month, Michaels said. The initial
price list will be offered free; subsequent
lists will be $4 each with a yearly
subscription rate of S8.
In addition to coins, ICA will also
offer attractive antiquities of the ancient
world, including pottery pieces. jewelry,
weapons, implements and figurines.
Michaels said All pieces are guaranteed
authentic and suitable for display.
A journalist and author. Michaels,
33, said he has collected coins since his
boyhood and has always harbored a
fascination for the ancient world. He
while researching a book in Italy.
Write or call Imperial Coins and
..
Antiquities, P.O. Box 25848. Fresno,
CA 93729,illustrated
tlie initial price list.~ receive
(209) 438-1707
The Celator December 1989 XIII

The Jascha Heifetz Collection Sale Part II

To Be Held In Conjunction With The New York International Numismatic Convention
December 9, 10, 1989
Insured Value Over $3.5 Million Dollars
• ~.' ;; .... "4 "

Pwlic Spain Sicily, itolar>e 41a-404 B.C ., Sicily. Leontinoi Sicilr, SyrKU$C Sicily, Syr~
Canba&o Nova SiI"er T~adrachm c. "70 B.C. C. 465 B.C. c. 405 B.C .
c. 128 B.C . 1i&Ded ..,. the Silver IXman:ICKm Silver Teuadraclam Sil,," rkkaduchm
Silver Triple Sbekd anist Herak.lcidas Tenadrachm, EF Vinually Min. Stale by Kimon, About ! f
Ch. vr, Only Tw<> Known

Car;', Rhodos, Sdcukid Ilin&dom, Ptolemaic Kiqdom of Mark Anum,. and

c. 395-375 B.C ., Selcukot I, c. 301 B.C., f«ypl Ptolemy IV Lucius AnIOlliul
Silver Trtradl', cllm Silver TetuchKhm 'l2.\·l()t B.C. 41 B.C. Gold AwtuI, Ef
Cold Okudrlchm
Superb, I!P

Galb., A.D. 68·69, Uranius AnI(lllillU$ T..,bonian"" Callus

Gold "\mIlS C..... 0 . 1.SJ..254 A.D. 2..51·153
Gold Awt .... Cold Double Aweus
$1I1'"".b, Ef Superb Ef

~­
. ._'-
"". " ''':'--' ~ '", ,-,,"

Ancient Coinage
HIGHUGHTS
Greek Gold of Ancient Britain, Kyzikos, Lydia
Numerous Gold States of Philip II, Alexander m and Lysimacbos
Important Archaic Greek Silver of Lete, Thasos and Lydia
Rarities of the Greek World, including a Dekadrachm of Syracuse and Carthage
Finest Style Tetradrachms of Greek Sicily, Demareteion issue of Leontinoi
Facing Head Issues of Katane (signed), Ainos and Rhodos
Probably the largest collection of Bar Kokhba Silver coins (referenced by Mildenberg die numbers) to be publicly auctioned -ever!
Gold Aurei of the twelve Caesars
Beautiful Silver and Bronze issues of the twelve Caesars
Rare Gold issues of Marciana, Herennius Etruscus and Constantine the Great
Roman Rarities, such as a Pomait Denarius of Clodius Macer, Auteus of Domitia, Antoninianus of Oryantilla
Collection of thirteen bronze Contorniates
Byzantine Gold, including rarities

, ',' • _ ... . > -" ••< . •

World Coinage
HIGHUGHTS
Gold Coins, 250 coins, of which there are 100 8 Escudos
Coinage of the West Indies, 70 lots
Coinage of Spanish America, Crowns and Minors, 800 lots
Nearly complete date and Assayer run of Pillar and Pomait Potosi 8 Reales
Finest collection of Santiago Colonial 8 Reales on the market in 15 years
Nearly complete. Bolivian minor type collection
Collection of Bolivian Proclamation coins
Mexico Colonial ~ Real to 8 Reales in superior condition
Several patterns and medals

Catalogue: Superior Galleries, New York

United States $15.00 A New York Corporation
Overseas $25.00 9478 West Olvmpic Boulevard, Beverly Hills, CA 90212-4299
(213) 203-9855 • Outside California: (800) 421'()754 • FAX: (213) 203-0496
N_ y ...... ~ MM ~ Uc_1827 113
·.XUII The Celator Decemlll!r 11189

Historical perspective
Classical coinage qualifies as a major art form
by Wayne G. Sayles people of antiquity. artistic production ideals. Greek sculptors were obsessed, first coins. gold and silver alloy
Art, by Webster's definition, is was a fact of life accepted without for example, with development of the (Electrum) pellets with crude incuse
human creativity; it is skill; it is a definition or qualification. Since, as ideal human proportion. Later, punch marks. were struck in Lydia
making of things that have fonn or much as the ancients. we are a product Byzantine artists conquered the secret of during the 7th century B.C. Kings and
beauty. No dictionary has ever defined of our own times it is impossible for us the illusionary surface. Out of the rulers were quick to see the practical and.
beauty more succinct1y than 5t. Thomas to think in these archaic tenns. We Renaissance came the ultimate in psychological advantages of placing
Acquinas. who concluded that it is must inevitably come to grips with the allegorical representation. In each case, symbols on their coins as coinage
merely what pleases the eye. I Beauty value systems we have inherited. To a progressive development of style
can be seen in a multitude of forms. but deny the existence of major art and brought new achievements and even
must it always be seen on an equal minor an is to deny the reality of our greater challenges. If the potters of
basis? Is all art equally beautiful or dichotomous world, yet to accept the ancient times had never improved on the
equally important? Moreso. is it all generalized views and tastes of those open bowl we would probably not think "To deny the existence of
equally valuable? Joseph AJsop2 has before us is to reject our heritage of of them as major artists. Perfection of major art and minor art is to
clearly demonstrated that the analytical inquiry and rational choice. the ideal is what made Exekias great
We must attempt, however imperfectly, Finally, major art must rise above
deny the reality of our
phenomenon of pedigreed art is a dichotomous world."
comparatively modem notion, springing to define in our own terms the nature of strict utilitarianism. A utilitarian object
out of the Renaissance along with the major versus minor art stresses usefulness over beauty. A
rise of art collecting. art historians, and The word -major" derives from the dinner plate, for example, is a common
art markets. Along wilh these "By- Latin "Magnus" meaning great; or in utilitarian ObjecL When decorated with
products" of art came the basic idea of the context of art, meaning of great a pleasing motif, it becomes a beautiful became universally accepted. The use of
major and minor art. importance. We have only to examine utilitarian object, but it is still political, religious, and natural designs
This was a concept apparently the history of the Apollo Belvedere to primarily functional. Decorated with became a fascinating phenomenon ; a
unknown to the patrons of antiquity. realize that great importance is a relative great artistry, as in the case of a veritable living library of cultural
The Roman emperor Augustus. an avid and sometimes fleeting accolade. 3 Wedgewood plate, it becomes history. This symbolism stimulated the
collector of coins and gems, would Greatness need not necessarily be something so powerfully aesthetic that imagination and aesthetic appreciation
surely have been shocked by a recognized in its own time. More than it will probably never grace a dinner of man, and from their very beginnings
suggestion that he dabbled in the minor one famous artist died a pauper, and table. It has therefore risen above its coins were valued as more than
arts. Specific evidence of the value even Rembrandt was shunned by the utilitarianism. utilitarian objects. They were sought
placed on art is seen in the Academy. On the contrary, time itself When an artistic object has become out and collected with an unmistakable
archaeological finds from countless orchestrates the winnowing of ideas and so valuable as art that it no longer aesthetic and geo-political awareness.
graves of past nobility. Those items abilities which we come to accept as serves its designed or intended purpose; G.K. Jenkins, keeper of coins and
most cherished by the deceased and great. Consequently, our society has is recognized within an established art medals in the British Museum, wrote:
carried with them into the afterworld established an art tradition which tradition; and is a perfection of its own nWe have plenty of reason to think. that
were exquisitely made jewelry, gems. includes connoisseurship and the art ideals; it deserves to be called major art. in ancient times too, fine coins were
metalwork, and vases. Not items of historian as key elements of an art In the evolution of artistic capable of being appreciated, over and
monumentality, but personal treasures market. It is essential, in the modem appreciation it has unfortunately been above their value· as currency, as objeclS
for which the departed was probably a context, that what we perceive as major axiomatic that works on the grand sca1e for presentation and fex adornment often
patron. With the exception of coins, art be recognized and accepted within our are seen as major and their miniature mounted in jewelry; and likely enough
which will be discussed later. works of own art tradition. The greatest judge of counterparts minor. Quality has seemed they also had a place in ancient art
art were usually accumulated as opposed that acceptance is the market at times to be measured in square feet or collections ." 5 The archaeological
to being collected. That is, they were In order to endure the vagaries of pounds. The words of H.W. Janson in evidence seems to support this view.
commissioned or purchased simply time, major art must, I feel, demonstrate his HislOry of Art express this feeling While excavating at Gordian (North·
because they pleased the eye. To the within itself a perfection of its own all too well. "We rarely think of coins Central Turkey) in 1951, a team
as works of art, and the great majority sponsored by the University of
of them do not encourage us to do so. Pennsylvania discovered a hoard of 114
Thomas D. Walker Presents The study of their history and silver tetradrachms buried in a small
development, known as numismatics, clay pot. 6 The pieces represent over 50
WAILOCIEffi U§ CCIHIc(])IICCIE© offen many rewards, but visual delight
is the least of these."4 This viewpoint,
cities or rulers from Macedon to Parthia
and Phoenicia to the Black Sea. Even
fortunately, has not always existed in
The Computerized Historical Outline - man's notion of aesthetics. To claim
when duplicates of a city exist, the
variety is different. For all practical
Information Considered Essential that every ancient coin is a majoc work
of art would be ludicrous, almost as
purposes the hoard consists of 114
~ All rights reserved, Thomas D. Walker, 1989. different pieces. The argument that
ludicrous as saying that visual delight is these coins were accumulated bullion is
llUl U Gl2Qbefg changed Ihe CWBe of world hillOly by making the least of their rewards. It is my at the very least statistically unsound.
informalioa available affordable 10 everyoae, WALKER'S CHOICEe intention simply to show that the Another hoard, found outside of Kabul,
changell Ibe way information il publi5hed and used. It providel a fluible tool design of coins was a major artistic
for exploring the relationships between hillOrie.a1 events and works of art. For Afghanistan, is similar. 7 Although
endeavor and that many products of
the rU'St time, publishing al10wJ you 10 add information and lludy buried with an assortment of Athenian
retatioaships iD your own wa)'l.
ancient celators have been recognized tetradrachms, which were undoubtedly
FiIUlUy, the 0I0lCE is)'Wrl. The Computeri7..cd HillOrica] OWiDe, Information Coosidered throughout history as major art. circulating in that region, seventeen
Essential · WALKER'S cnOiCECI • is a software tool whkh aids in the sludy aod teaching c( The art tradition of the western world quite unusual and quite collectable
history. This tool includes a ~duJ., flexible, and easy 10 UIe database I)'IteIll plus bundreds c( facti has become increasingly identifiable pieces were found. Some of these
cooceruilll hiaorical eveDts and WOfb dart, u well U Cf'OK refereoua; allowing Ihe user 10 these with one of its major components,
eventl and items bued OD their alliure, geogra~ical impact, Ind in the cue of worb of an:hitecture
pieces are unique examples of Greek city
collecting. Collecting takes on many coinage.
and art, where they can be seeD aDd including many museum openillg times.
forms and is every bit as personal as it The Romans also collected coins and
The iDformalion inclOOed with this sdtwllre iI DOt the final Slate c( this data, u )'011 QD ac<:elI
this infonnation in In)'l of your own cbooI.iog. Idd dIta, aDd invatiglle other croa rererence is sometimes institutional. The saving gems of exceptional beauty. The
possibilities. Becauae WALKER'S CHOICEC alIowI you 10 iDpul your own iororrnaliOll, you and appreciation of ancient coins is one emperor Augustus was well known as a
caD UIe !his tool u 111 aid 10 relClJdllO lilY degr= of ecmplexity or epeciaIitition. WALKER'S of the world's oldest foons of collecting, collector of coins from distant lands.
CHOICEe information includes: reigu of the Roman I!mpmn, Popea. Holy RomlIl Emperora. and its history is a major chapter in the
OnomaD SulWu., KillgJ d France, Getmany, and England, and Ihe Prcaideau d the UDited States; history of art collecting in general. The Please tum to _ 'IN
huod.red.s of evenli inc:ludUlg wan. bratlles, boob, edicts, tnveiJ and traliUj the names lDd loeations
or hUDdled, c( archaeological &ilea, caaJea, ulhedrall, churdtell, muleUlllS, palaoe. lDd temples
(indexed gcographiuUy, aylilliuUy, eulturally and politically); and the names and loeatiOOI of
hundreds of works of art from ancietlllO modem Iimea. CoIledI Roman Coins
WALKER'S CHOICEC aJlowI )'011 10: cbooIe iItmI and eveDtl baed 011 their Q.I/turl1
context, sekd. tombillltioos d dtmtots, IUd! &I a &tJdy d Byzantine lid lIlamie demtllll aDd
ChaDge or add your OWl! indexing words; seleet worts of art and pI.Ices 10 see based 011 Iheir The BestlDtrod_ to Ihe
COlLlliC'l'lNG
geogra~ical loeation; input yQ1r own liS!: of cities."fo'OtU of art, ardIitcdute, or eveJ1tJ; ",lect itemI Hobby! Announcing dIe_d
from a range of datu; print UliDg layoW povided, RICh u pIacea to _, a hiI&oIy wiIh lOy ROMAN COINS the best new bo!* on ooUeaing
combiDation of mIneDU, lid catalogs of works of art; and UIt ODe c( the 1DOIl powerful and flexible
software tool. ever developed. FII.EM:AKER II, to develop your own databue Ipplicatioot (or
Roman Coins. GencrousIy
iIImIrar.d wUh wens;.. priciog
"""'"PoteDlill usen for WAIXER.'S CHOICEC iDdude teacben., IIudaIU, tu.IoriaM lid biIlory IRIgJ3I!inginfmnalion.A
buffs, art lover$, tdvd IItIIU aod 1flve1en., aod yw.
WALKER'S CHOICEC requin::lao Apple MIciDIOIb will • nUimum d 1MB, a hard dUt. fA compIeIe srqH>y-SIqI guide. AI
ooIy $14.9S,1his is die best value
V
-
and RLEMAKER lllOftware, by ClariL
available. 51ft to become lHE

WALKER'S CHOICE©, Without FILEMAKER Ii. $250 .._--

-. saandad relcrmcc. See (U"
cla«ified ad in dtis issue fm-
mIcring and m:eiptd. FREE
Thomas D. Walker GIFT. - u..ion PubIishing-
P.o. Box 29188, San Antonio, Texas 78229 (512) 696-5393
Allow six weeks fex delivery.
.The Celatar December 1989 ··· XV

Major Art Continued from page XliII

Somewhat ironically. a Pre~Roman
English chieftan had a coin of Augustus
made into an exquisite piece of jewelry
known as the Lexden Pendant. 8 A
hoard of Roman gold coins found in
Vitry, Switzerland contained 72 pieces,
no two of which were alike. 9 Even
their successors in the West, often cal1ed
barbarians, lit up the "Dark Ages" with
striking jewelry made with collected
coins. 10 Charlemagne imported many
actual works of ancient art from Italy in
his attempted revival of the Roman
Empire, and struck coins of a very
classical nature which were presumably
patterned after actual coins in his
possession. I I
The art tradition springing out of the
Renaissance recognized ancient coins
not only as objects of beauty, but as
historical and cultural documents. The
great classical humanist, Petrarch,
formed a notably scientific and artistic
collection of these coins in the mid 14th
century,12 and most of the princes of
Europe had, by the 15th century,
developed sophisticated coin cabinets of
their own which furthered the study and
appreciation of these art historical
treasures. Many of the important royal
collections later became the nuclei for
state museum collections. Some
notable examples are the coins of King
George IV in the British Museum, those
of Maximillian I in the Bibliotheque
Imperiale (Vienna), and Mathias
Corvin's in the University of Budapest
collection. The collection of the
Cabinet de MMailles in Paris was also
expanded greatly through the
numismatic plunder of Napoleon's
armies. 13
An unparalleled surge of scholarship
occurred during the 19th and early 20th
centuries, much of which dealt with the
classifying of coin types. Out of this
period also came reaff1lTll3.tion of the age
old premise that coins are art. Imhoof-
Blumer and Gardner wrote of coins
which illustrate lost masterpieces, 14
and Gardner, in archaeological fashion,
examined coin types from an artistic
perspective.1 5 In 1864, Reginald Stuart
Poole delivered a discourse at the Royal
Institution of Great Britain in which he
defended Greek coins as important
monuments of Greek art based on their .
aesthetic value. 16 This theme has been
expounded on in recent years by Charles
Seltman in Masterpieces of Greek
Coinage. and C.H.V. Sutherland in Art
in Coinage.
The recognition of ancient coins as
an important part of our art tradition is
thoroughly documented and the
foregoing examples are of necessity
brief. Perhaps the most concrete
evidence of this recognition and
connoisseurship is in the marketplace
itself. A Syracusan or Catanian coin
struck by one of the great master
celators can easily bring 1000 times its
intrinsic value in today's market A less
artistic example of the same
denomination may bring only a tenth of
that amount.
The striking of coins in ancient
times was a labor intensive business.
The striking itself took the efforts of
three workers, one to align and hold the
dies, one to feed the pre-heated planchet
into the die, and one to strike the die
with a heavy mallet. The process was
slow and exacting. Temperature control
of the planchet was extremely
important, as was the amount of force
applied by the mallet. Quite often in
the process dies were worn or broken,
which meant re-engraving at the least
and more probably a complete
replacement of the die. This constant
engraving process provided the
opportunity for wide artistic
experimentation and expression.
The die·s~s art required no less
than a fusion of the greatest advances in
painting and sculpture. The impact of
sculptural technique is especially evident
in experimentation with the facing head
on Greek coins after 450 B.C. as well as
in the refinement of human proportions
on recurring types from the Archaic to
the Hellenistic period. At the same
time, the sophistication of composition
and design on these coins reflects a
narrative quality that could only have
come from minds schooled in a
painterly tradition. It is not surprising
th:at some of these artists also took to
die engraving, working interchangeably
in that medium, and achieved
recognition internationally on as grand a
scale as masters of para1lel arts. 17
As famous painters of the fifth
century signed their works, so too did
the best of the die engravers. We find
the name of HeracJeidas on coins of
Catana. along with that of Euainetus
who also designed beautiful coins for
the city of Syracuse. Phrygillus, who
worked for Greek cities in Italy, also
created coins for Syracuse as did the
great sculptor and celator Kimon. Other
cities such as Acragus, Olympia, and
Clazomenae produced coins of equal
beauty and prestige signed by the
masters of their art. Die engraving was
a natural medium for experimentation
since the coin presented an image
isolated in time and space. It did not
compliment any architectural device or
rely on the fall of light and shade for its
essence. It was this freedom which
allowed and indeed nurtured within the
art itself a synthesis and perfection of
ideals.
In the mid fifth century Polyldeitos,
a native of Sicyon and resident- of
Argos, created the classical ideal of
human beauty and form. His
Doryphoros (Spear Bearer) was accepted
and acclaimed by ancient writers as the
Canon. or perfect measure of human
proportions. Lysippus, also of Sicyon,
replaced that Canon in the last half of
the fourth century with a new set of
proportions which resulted in a more
slender body with a smaller head and
more lithe sense of being. The die
maker's awareness and development of
this change is demonstrable through a
comparison and analysis of early and
late examples of similar motif on Greek
city-stale coinage.
The Locri Opuntii, a people that
lived in the region between Thessaly and
Boeotia, worshipped Ajax, son of a
Locrian king name Oileus, as their
national hero. This Ajax participated in
the Trojan War but is not to be confused
with the great Ajax, son of Teiamon,
from Salamis. Prior to 371 B.C. the
~u!.1tii struck a beautiful silver stater
With the head of Persephone on the
obverse and their national hero on the
reverse. 18 Ajax is presented in a very
Poiyclitan style, full of kinetic energy.
Please tum to page XVII

ANNOUNCING AN IMPORTANT NEW PUBLICATION!

MINE~VA
. The International Monlbly Review of Ancient Art & Archaeology
MINERVA is an illustrated news and review magazine, appearing monthly (except July
and August), devoted to ancient art, antiquities, archaeological and numismatic discoveries
worldwide from prehistory to the 18th century. With regular contributors from around the
world, MINER VA. published in England, is truly international in style and coverage.
Feature articles will emphasize newly discovered works of art and objects of
archaeological and numismatic imponance leading to a better understanding of the pasL
A monthly numismatic column will furnish readers with a lively review of the ancient
coin marketplace. Regular excavation reports will include prehistoric, classical, early
Christian, medieval, Egyptian, Biblical, Near Eastern. Asian, Oceanic, African and
American findings, as well as reports on underwater archaeology.
Liberally illustrated with full-color and black and white photographs, it will impress you
with the breadth of its coverage, the forcefulness of its reporting, the knowledge and wit
of the feature writers, and the sheer usefulness of the many reports and listings for
museum and gallery exhibitions, auctions, fairs, conferences, meetings, as well as the
abstracts and book reviews.
Jerome M. Eisenberg, PhD.. Editor-in-Chief
Professor Bani Jones and Peter A. Clayton, Managing Editors
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xVI The Celator

Coins of the Bible

Reader poses question
Bank Leu Ltd Zurich Dear Mr. Hendin:
Numismatics I'm confused about ancient coins that have been cleaned. Are they okay. or not?

Every year we have an auction of very important ancient coins
in spring.
We issue occasiona/lists.
Our stock ranges from Hemitartemoria to Dekadrachmai, and
from Quadrantes to Multiple Aureus Medallions.
We actively buy and sell at al/ price levels.
Bank Leu Ltd
In Gassen 20 CH-8001 Zurich Switzerland
Telephone (from the US) 011 411 2192406 Te/efax 0114112193306
Dear Reader:
Cleaned ancient coins are not only okay, they are the rule rather than the esception .
However, I don't wonder that you're confused. In a country where we grew up
collecting pennies and dimes - and. what did we know, we like them shiny - we got the
same message early: Don't clean your coins, ever. And for those coins it was good
advice.
However, based on my 23 years of study and archaeological field work, I estimate
that fewer than 15 percent of bronze and silver ancient coins are discovered in a
"collectable" state. Invariably, these are "surface finds" - that is coins found on a beach
or on the surface of the ground or sand. The reason that these are pleasant to look at is
that the air, water, and wind have worked on those coins for centuries and have literally
smoothed out one of Mother Nature's uglier pastimes, corrosion.
Corrosion, simply stated, is rust We are most familiar with rust when it affects
iron, or other metals that rust very quickly. Rust occurs when the surface of the metal
encounters various elements of nature, especially moisture and oxygen. Bronze also
"rusts" albeit very slowly. Silver, too. Even gold, although it is the least affected of
the common coinage mews. Other earth elements also affect the way a coin will age.
Certain metal or mineral deposits - for example, lime, iron, and various salts - will
affect metal surfaces differently over centuries.
Thus, numbers of coins with a beautiful, natural patina are quite rare, and the vast
majority of coins are found shrouded in thick, ugly encrustations. Vinually all ancient
coins that come from archaeological excavations need to be cleaned in order to be
pcoperly identified.
For the next part of this answer you must stand up, walk into the dining room, and
look at your silver service. Unless your cleaning lady has been at work, you will
notice it is rather tarnished. It shined only a month or two ago. Now, do you really
believe that ancient Greek or Roman silver coins could survive for 2,000 years and stiU
be as shiny as the ancient silver coins you buy today? All of those silver coins are
discovered with encrustations that range from, literally, a 2,OOO-year tarnish, to thick
green and gray coatings that obscure virtually every detail.
Some coins are cleaned poorly. Other coins have been cleaned well, but are made of
metal that was just not well preserved due to its original alloy and Mother Nature.
Most ancient coin dealers do not clean coins for two reasons. First it is very time
consuming. Second this type of ancient art conservation is specialized and technical.
Only a generous handful of people in the United States are capable of doing it well.
Cleaning and restoration is Mt the S(lJTU! as tooling or otherwise altering the fabric
of a coin. The purpose of tooling or otherwise altering a coin is dueption andfraud.
"The purpose of proper Cleaning and restoration is to pres~rve a coin and r~stor~ it to as
close to its original condition as possible without damaging the fabric of the cQin.
All major museums with numismatic collections or departments of archaeology
have conservation experts departments. Indeed, few archaeologists are as demanding as
most ancient coin collectors with regard to coin esthetics. Archaeologists don't care
about a nice, uniform tone on a coin, as long as they can see it to identify it.
Collectors insist that coins are cleaned and treated carefully so they look good and do
not deteriorate.
Over the years, there have been a number of "Fashionable" fmishes applied to coins
by conservators after cleaning. In Europe in the 19th century, the high-gloss patinas
were greatly desired. 11Jey were enhanced by a form of wax buffed into the surfaces of
the coin. In the Middle East until the 1960's coin dealers cleaned coins by inserting
them into a slit in a lemon for a few days, then rinsing them, then coloring them by
burning match heads on their surface. Some collectors continue to use this technique
to create even tones on the surface of ancient coins.

COINS It was once fashionable for ancient silver coins to have a nice, slightly tarnished
tone. But since the advent of the wide use of metal detectors and the subsequent
discovery of many hoards, the bright, mintlike luster typical to silver hoard coins after
proper cleaning has been preferred.
Tooling is the villain of whom to beware. Using hardened steel tools and working
under a microscope some numismatic Dr. Frankensteins actually "operate" on the
surfac:es of coins. Instead of removing the obvious bits of dirt, corrosion, or other
encrustation, they actually cut away at the metal and recut letters or even, in some
cases, the designs or inscriptions.
You can see if a coin is tooled by looking at it with a magnification of at least 12
times. Style also tells a great deal. A tooled coin, no matter how skillfully worked,
cannot compare to a struck. letter.
Thus, it isn't proper cleaning or conservation of coins that is a problem with regard
to ancients. The issue is to insure that you collect coins that have not been recut or
tooled.

s Ancient Coins
• Mail Bid Sales
• Fixed Price lists
• Buy or Bid Sales
Free List • Numis11llIlic Literature

Specializing in moderate priced Judaean coins

TOM CEDERLIND (serious want·lists solicited)

P. O. Box 1963-C William M. Rosenblum/rare coins

po box355ewrg--..cda80439
Portland, OR • 97207 303-83&-4831
'Tbe,Celato,f, ,,', December 1989
Major Art
By contrast. the same coin struck
between 371 and 335 B.C. shows the
unmistakable influence of Lysippian
thought,19 In the Macedonian royal
tombs recently excavated at Vergina
there is further proof that the standards
or Canon of Lysippus touched artists in
northern Greece prior to the rise of
Alexander the Great. Found in the main
tomb was a gilded silver gorytus of
Scythian style with a complex relief
decoration. 20 One of the central figures
in this relief is none other than the Ajax
of Locris executed in exactly the same
style as the later coinage just
mentioned.
From the Arcadian city of
Megalopolis is seen an amazing
occurrence of this stylistic change in
successive coinage produced by the same
artist The reverse type of a seated Pan
was originally designed by an artist who
Sel his signature "CharL .. " on a rock
beneath the subject. His theme was
carried on by one who signed ~Oly ...."
and then ~O lym.. ". The earlier coin,
signed Oly ... which could have been
struck as early as 371 B.C. depicts Pan
as a stocky, short waisted figure, cast in
a rather stiff pose.21 The later coins of
this artist, signed Olym ....• show a
much more relaxed figure with an
elongated torso and distinctly more
humanized attitude. 22 This style is
attributed to about 360 B.C. and, if
nothing else, at least reflects the
maturing of the artist and the perfection
of Ihe ideal.
The acceptance of new standards of
human proportion was by no means
immediate or universal. The transition
can be seen on coins of Maroneia, for
example, as late as 148 B.C. These
brief examples which illustrate a
conscious shift in artistic representation
are by no means isolated. Case after
case can be shown where well
established subject matter undergoes a
predictable transfonnation of style. The
evidence seems clearly to indicate a
close parallel between coin styles and
the contemporary styles of other major
ru-~,
Greek vase painters of the fifth
century. tackling the thorny problem of
circular space in their magnificent tondo
designs, found a successful theme in
Herakles wrestling the Nemean Lion. 23
In a coin designed by Phrygillos for the
town of Heraclea about 410 B.C. the
same motif is used .24 Taking
advantage of the vase painter'S
experimentation. Phrygillos created a
more powerful image with better
utilization of the circular space. It is
also worth noting that he proudly and
conspicuously signed his work. Fifteen
years later Euainetos took the design
one step further in a gold coin struck for
the city of Syracuse. 25 Here the form
seems ready to explode from the surface
of the coin, held in only by some
imaginary constricting band. There is
compelling evidence in this example,
and others like it, that the vase painter
and die-sinker shared common problems
and perhaps jointly came to common
solutions .
Not every scene found on coinage is
a study in treatment of the circular
space. It is clear that some
representations are purely narrative or
visual. Coins often represented famous
statues, buildings. and wall paintings of
their region. Major art forms have
always tended to share inspiration and
ancient coins were no exception.
Kanachos, of Sicyon, was a maker of
bronze, marble. wood
chryselephantine statues. One of his
and
more famous works was the cult statue
of Apollo holding a bow and a stag at
XVII
Continued from page XV
Ky/ix Tondo Heracfea tetradrachm Syracuse 100 Litra
the sanctuary in Didyma. This archaic in the artistic sense, but the manner of
denarius of Augustus into a pendant.
statue of Apollo Philesios was removed its presentation and the obvious What connoisseur of art could melt
from the sanctuary by Darius of Persia symbolism hints at a sharing of ideals down a Syracusan decadrachm to make
in 494 B.c' It was returned two between the celator and the metal silverware?
hundred years later by Seleucus T. one of worker. Ancient coins drew inspiration
the generals and successors of Alexander from from many sources and in many In ancient times one could say with
the Great. 26 Subsequent rulers of cases were the source of inspiration some validity that the distinction
between major art and minor art did not
Miletus, a neighboring city, often themselves.
exist. or that it had nothing to do with
honored the Apollo of Didyma through
If the final test of an object's merit the medium that the artist chose for
representations on their coins. Two
such examples are a bronze struck in the as major art is the ability for it to expression. Today. this is not the case.
overcome its utilitarian value. coins We are faced with the reality of a
first century B.C. with the Apollo
Philesios obverse and a reclining lion pass splendidly. Ancient coins were, at complex art tradition which places great
least until the third century A.D., valued emphasis on defining the degrees of art.
reverse,27 and another bronze of the
Roman emperor Nero with the cult
by their intrinsic worth in precious No clear cut rules apply to the
metal. If a coin from some foreign land judgement of major versus minor art,
statue on the reverse.28 or disenfranchised ruler was unacceptable
Other examples of famous statues but the criteria offered here provides
as currency it could be melted down and some measure of comparison at least
represented on coins include the Nike of
restruck or used in some other form. from our point in time. By this criteria
Samothrace on a coin of Demetrius When a coin was collected for its
ancient coins are major art. In a much
Poliorcetes;29 the Praxitilean Aphrodite historical or artistic merit it necessarily larger sense. ancient coins have always
of Cnidus on coins of the Roman became more valuable than its been and always will be major art.
emperor Caracalla struck at that city;30 utilitarian worth. This is not only They reflect our culture. our heritage,
and the Zeus at the temple of Olympia evident in modern times, where coins of our ideals. and our beliefs. They make a
by Pheidias on a coin of Hadrian from great rarity and artistic merit sell for statement that time cannot erase.
Elis.3 1 very high prices, but it was just as (fue
The list goes on. but the for the Vitry collector who withheld 72
different Roman gold coins, or the Please tum to page XXVIIII
phenomenon is perhaps better illustrated
by a relatively obscure sculpture now in English chieftan who turned a silver
the Louvre. This Hadrianic relief titled
"Satyr after the chase" depicts a young
seated male figure holding a dead rabbit
by the hind legs, in a playful gesture,
over the head of a small panther cub.
This figure is identical to that usually
described as Demos on a coin of
A.H. BALDWIN & SONS LTD
Tarentum struck between 431 and 371
B.C.3 2 Since neither the relief nor the Established 1872
coin are likely to be original works, it
is logical to assume that the two artists
shared an inspiration and an image that NUMISMATISTS
transcended time.
This bond, that linked celators to
sculptors. linked celators to painters as
weU. A Roman Republican denarius
struck in 47 B.C. under L. Plautius
Plancus had on its obverse the head of
the gorgon Medusa, and on its reverse
Victory holding a palm branch and
leading a quadriga. The quadriga scene
closely resembles a description by Pliny
of a painting done by Nichomachus for
L. Munatius Plancus, the moneyer's
brother, who placed it as a dedication in
the CapitoL33 Martin Price sees the
denarius as being after the Nichomachus
painting. The existence of at least two
first century B.C. carnelian gems, with
GREEK ROMAN AND
the identical image, confinns that the
coin image's source was widely known BYZANTINE COINS
and might indeed have been the ISLAMIC COINS
painting.3 4 The fact that a coin die-
sinker, a gem carver, and a painter MEDIAEV AL AND MODERN
shared in the perfection of this master COINS OF THE WORLD
image says much about the equality and
interrelationship of their work.
NUMISMATIC BOOKS AND
Another example of the AUCTION CATALOGUES
interrelationship between disciplines is
seen in a beautiful gold wheat votive or
funerary offering found in Syracuse.3 5 A.H. BALDWIN & SONS LTD.
The same delicacy of treatment that
brings the ears of wheat to life is found 11 ADELPHI TERRACE
on coins of Metapontum struck at about
the same time, late fourth century B.C .
LONDON WC2N 6BJ, U.K.
A subject as naturalistic as an ear of
wheat certainly requires no development
·. XYIII The Celator Decemb'.... 1989

ElYMAIS BRONZE TETRADRACHM

Persian, A.D. 200.
ALEXANDER THE GREAT $75 ea.
SILliER DRACHMS. Egypt SUMERIAN NECKLACE
33&-323 B.C. $110 ea. Slone disc beads, black, grey, and white,
c. 3,000 B.C.. (wearable) $49 ea.
PERSIS DBURZOR SILVER DRACHM
4th Century B.C .. OborzosfFire Temple
$1100 ea.

ROMAN BRONZE FIBULA

(brooch) approx. 1yt, A.D. 200,
(beautiful condition) $95 ea.

BYZANTIN E GOLD SOLID I ROMAN BRONZE BRACELETS

Various rulers, A.D. 4()()·700. $325 ea. Design on terminals, c. A.D. 100, (wearable)
$25 ea.

PERSIAN GOLD DARle

331-305 B.C. (beautiful style & condition)
$2500 ea.

SASSANIAN SILVER DIRHAMS

various rulers, 6th-7th Century A.D.,
broad flan $19 ea. SHAPUR I·SASSANIAN EMPIRE
SILVER DIRHAM, PERSIAN,
A.D. 240-270, $125 ea.

SICULO PUNIC SILVER

TETRAORACHM, 35().320 B.C.
Head of Alexander/Horse head. $1200 ea.

EGYPTIAN FAIENCE USHABTI

Inscribed: PA-AMUN, 26th Dynasty, 600 B.C.
tall, translation included. $295 ea. EGYPTIAN FAIENCE AMULET
26th Dynasty, c. 600 B.C., blue/green color,
LURISTAN BRONZE SPEAR POINTS (mint condition). $300 ea.
c. 1200-800 B.C.. 5"-6" long. A-Horus, the falcon headed god.
(fine condition) $89 ea. S-Djed column, represents stability.
C-Ptah, the patron of arts and crafls.
D-Isis, goddess of magical power.

BULL & HORSEMAN COPPER COINS

EGYPTIAN FAIENCE USHABTI ROMAN BRONZE COINS (from India) ISLAMIC SILVER DIRHAMS
Inscribed: TA-ZE-DI, 26th Dynasty, 600 B.C. Various rulers, indentifiable, A.D. 100-300. mixed rulers . ........... .. ... .. .$5.00 ea. with inscriptions, 7th-9th Century A.D.
4" taU, translation included. $95 ea. $10 ea. 10 or more ......... ... ... .... ... . ... .. $4.50 ea. $19 ea .
40 or more .. . $4.00 ea.
 The celator December 1989 .. XVIII

HOlYLANO TERRA COTTA BOTTLES PARTHIAN SILVER ORACHMS PERSIAN CERAMIC JARS
Daily used for perfumes. oils and spices. Fish motif in geometric design, nice glaze. BVBLUS PHOENICIAN AR
238 B.C.-A.D. 228, variOllS rulers, turquoise and black color, c. 1850, 10" tal l. OISHEKEl-AZBAAl
C. 100 B.C. 3"-4" tall $39 ea. (very fine), $45 ea. 350 B.C. $1000 ea.
$395 ea.
BYBlOS PHOENICIAN
SILVER AR 1/8 SHEKEL
4th Century B.c.,
$69 ea.

PTOLEMY X SILVER TETRAORACHM

Egypt, 106-88 B.C. $95 ea. EGYPTIAN SCARABS
Ancient symbol "TO EXIST", inscrjbed
with hieroglyphS, appro)(. V{ long
Hyksos & New Kingdom $95 ea.
EGYPTIAN MUMMY BEAD NECKLACE
WITH FAIENCE AMULET
26th Dynasty 600 B.C. , 24" long,
(wearable) $145 ea. CARNELIAN CUT STONES
Inscribed with an ancient prayer.
c. 15-16 Century, approx. 1" long
suitable for setting $29 ea.

;t···
--

tl.
':

ALEXANDER THE GREAT HOLYLAND OIL LAMPS

ROMAN AE FOLIS BRONZE COINS SILVER TETRADRACHMS.
EGYPTIAN FAIENCE USHABTI A.D. 284-305. various rulers. $35 ea. Terra cotta lamps in different styles.
Inscribed: PSAM-TEK. 26th Dynasty, 600 B.C .. Egypt, (nice quality. well centered) from 100 B.C. to 5th Century A.D., 2 -3" long
4" tall, translation included. $275 ea. $225 ea. $39 ea.

lURISTAN BRONZE CEREMONIAL ANIMALS SICilY SYRACUSE AGATHOKLES

WIDOW MITES 1,200-800 B.C. SILVER TETRADRCHM
THESSALY LARISSA DRACHM 317-289 B.C. $950 ea.
Ancient Biblical Coins. (new testament: Small . l1h· . . .. _.$95 ea. 350-325 B.C.. (nice style) $495 ea.
Mark 12:41-44) 2,000 yrs. old. Medium, 2· ... .. ..... ........ .$185 ea.
(Identified). $10 ea. Large. 23ft . .. $300 ea.
,
xx.
Questions remain
Byzantine coins provide opportunities for discovery
by Tony Goodwin
One of the attractions of Byzantine
numismatics is that the coins have
generally not received quite so much
study as the Roman series and that some
periods of Byzantine history are not well
documented. Consequently the collector
quite often comes across puzzling coins
and occasionally real discoveries can be
made. The three coins described in this
article each pose questions to which I
have suggested possible answers. They
may possibly throw a little light on
some dark comers of Byzantine history
or practices in the Byzantine mint.
The first coin (Fig. 1) is really very
odd. It is clearly based on a seventh
ce ntury Byzantine folli s with the
standard M I on the reverse, the officina
letter below, and AN·NN on either side
of the M which is presumably a
blundered copy of ANNO and a date.
The obverse is more peculiar with the
figure of an emperor holding a cross.
but with a very strange helmet or crown
on his head. There is no legend. but on
either side of the emperor's head are
symbols that look very much like a
crescent and a star. These symbols do
not occur on seventh century Byzantine
coinage2 but they almost always occur
on the contemporary coinage of the
Sassanians. arch rivals o f th e
Byzantines.
In about 608 AD the Sassanian ruler
Khusru II invaded the eastern Byzantine
territories and over the next few years
overran much of Syria, Egypt and Asia
Minor. Perhaps worst of all for the
Byzantines. he captured Jerusalem and
carried off the True Cross to his capital
at Ctesiphon. His pretext was the
murder by the usurper Phocas of the
Clip & Save
Coin File
-----------------------
Justin II
AE - Follis, Cherson
I 565-578 A.D.
I Juslin & SOphia
I !Tiberiu.?
I~-
I Justin II was selected for succession prior to his uncle Justinian's
I death , however he lacked the ability and resources to carry out his
I predecessor's policies. Influenced greatly by his powerful wife Sophia
and suffering from mental illness, he appointed Tiberius Constantine
I to act as regent during the last four years of his reign. The obverse
I of this follis depicts Justin (left) holding a globe with cross and
I Sophia holding a cruciform sceptre. Both are standing and nimbate.
I On the reverse, is also a standing nimbate figure, conjectured to be
Tiberius , flanked by the large "M" w hich denotes the denomination 40
IL nummia
________________________
. The mint name on this remarkable example is omitted.
INTERESTING STUFF
IDENTIFIED MEDIEVAL
ISLAMIC SILVER:
$5 each. 5diH. $25. 10diff. $48.
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BRONZES,
Mostly Ptolemaiclowgrade, as lhey come.
$5each. 10 for$35.
UNSORTED MEDIEVAL CHINESE CASH
ca. 61a-.1400AD 10 /or $5, l OO k/( $32.
Chinese Cash Identifk;ation
book (~ensen) $3.
24 OIFF. IDENTIAED CHINESE CASH,
ca 180 BC· 1908 AD , mounted on card , $32.
Lists featuing moderately priced Wor1d coins.
ancienland Islamic coins, Primitive morley.
Notgeld coins. world paper money and
Numismatic books are avai lable. Wrile today .
slating yourinieresis.
JOEL ANDERSON
Interesting world coins since 1970
PO Box 3016-CL, MERCED, CA 95344
(209) 722-5426
The .Cefalo... December 1989
Byzantine empero r Maurice Tiberius,
who had earlier helped Khusru. The
Byzantine empire was in dire need of a
general of genius. and fortunately it
found one in Heraclius. son of the
Exarch of Carthage who rebelled against
Phocas and replaced him as emperor in
610. Heraclius spent the next few years
reorganizing the empire. but in 622 the Fig. 1
great counter offensive began and Copy of 7th century Byzantine follis.·
resulted in the complete defeat of the Obv. Imperial Bust with crescent and star. Rev. M. (Diam. 23mm.)
Sassanians who were driven right back
into their Persian homeland.
Could it be that our coin was in fact
issued during the occupation of Syria or
Asia Minor by the Sassanians? The
Byzantine economy was heavily
dependent on the bronze coinage for its
day to day operation and during the
twenty years of Persian occupation
supplies must have run short. Some
unofficial minting possibly took place,
but the presence of the Sassanian Fig. 2
Arab Byzantine fof/is of Diospolis (Lad in /srael) 7th century:
symbols on our coin suggests some
form of official recognition by the Obv. Constans II type standing figure holding a fang cross and a globus
cruciger; legend around in Greek "DIOSPOLIS Rev. M with cross above
N
•
occupying authorities. Th is theory is
and blundered date to r. (year 7 or 8?). Mint NIKO in exergue. (Diam. 22mm.)
given some added weight by the
existence of a number of 12 nummi3
coins minted at Alexandria and almost
certainly dating from the period of
Sassanian occupation which also have a
crescent and star on the obverse.
The second coin (Fig. 2) looks at
firs t sight like a standard follis of
Constans 11. (641-668) bearing the mint
mark NIKO on th e reverse for
Nicomedia (i n modern Turkey).
However. closer examination of the
obverse shows that instead of the usual
legend "EN TUTO NIKA,,4 there is the Fig. 3
name of a town "DIOSPOLIS". or Lad Follis of Constantine X 1059-1067: Reverse only of two coins,
Eudocia (I.) and Constantine (r.)
Please tum to page XXIIII holding between them a labarum. (Diam. 30 mm.)
QUOTES FROM THE PAST
"If you hear that a mountain has moved,
believe; but if you hear that a man has
changed his character, believe it not."
:
Mohammedan Proverb
I
I
I
I
I TRIVIA QUIZ
I
I What famous c"y In Syria was the
I natlve city of Julia Damna, Elagabalus,
I and Severus Alexander? 11 was also the
sIte of the hIstorIc baHte between
I Aurellan and Zenobia.
I
I
I
_ .J (Last month's answer on page XXXII II)
\. .. ,~V W\-1AT 17\17
E-XPE.C.T?
 · .
December' '1989
Harmer Rooke to auction
ancients on December 8
A Roman gold aureus struck. under
the Emperor Trajan (98- 117 A.D.),
Cohen-l Si , Extra Fine - plus. estimated
at $3,000, is one of the classic coins
being fea tured in Harmer Rooke
Numismatists' "The Decade Sale"
scheduled for the firm's New York City
Galleries on Friday, December 8th.
The coin's obverse shows Trajan's
laureate bust. while the reverse depicts
the personification of "Fortuna" holding
a rudder and comucopiae.
The auction features 535 10lS and
consists of a wide range of materials:
from ancient Greek, Roman and Persian
rarities. to coins from all parts of the
world (including many European
crowns), and choice U.S. coins.
Among the Greek silver pieces is an
Athens tetradrachm, the renowned ~ Owl"
type, easily ranking as one of the most
popular of all ancient coins. c. 450
B.C., S-2526, EF, and estimated at
$1,200. The same coin in Choice VF
is estimated at an even $1.000.
Other noteworthy Greek. silver coins
in the auction are - Ionia-Magnesia;
tetradrachm. 2nd century B.C .•
magnificent portrait of Artemis/Apollo
reverse. S4485. BMC-37. AU. $900.
Locri Epizephyrii (Bruttium): stater.
c. 332·300 B.C., S·483 AU, $500.
Siculo-Punic (Machanat): tetradrachm.
c. 305-295 B.C., similar to Alexander
the Great coinage. Herakles in lion
skinlHermes head.. palm tree behind.
Pozzi-3304. EF, $1,500.
Syracuse: tetradrachm, c. 317-289
B.C., Persephone and three
dolphinslQuadriga, S-971, BMC-347.
issued under Agatboldes, No wear
apparen~ $2,000.
Thrace-Istrus: stater, c. 400-350
B.C.. Inverted heads in 314 proftleiSea
Eagle on dolphin, S-1669, EF, $500.
Thrace: Lysimachus, c. 323-281 B.C.,
Alexander the Great/Athena enthroned,
ex-Newell Collection, EF. $450.
The sale also features a variety of
Alexander the Great tetradrachms, all
from the Amphipolis Mint. and mostly
from one hoard
Among the Alexander gold staters.
there is a Babylon Mint type, M-731,
Choice, "Griffin on Helmet", and
estimated at $2,500. Another Alexander
gold stater, this one having an "Athena
in Corinthian helmet" obverse and
"Nike standing" reverse, Macedon Mint.
VF, carries a $1,500 estimate.
A Persian gold daric issued under
King Darius Ill, c. 450 B.C .• King
Don't forget to Tell your friends
about The Celator
HOARD SPECIALS
A. $475 Byzantine AE (100) lair·fine.
B. $675 Greek AE wilh Roman Coloniais (100) lair·fine
C. $695 "Widow's Mite" type lepta (100) lair·fine
D. $495 Roman bronzes (100) VG·VF
E. $195 Roman bronzes (100) fair·fine
F. $495 Roman bronzes (500) mostly fair
G. $280 Ancients (1000) mostly poor
Please add $8 for postage and packing
Mission Viejo Mall, Suite 132
Mission Viejo, CA 92691
1-5 at Crown Valley (714) 364-0990
XXI
Coming Events ....
Nov. 29 - Dec. 1 Hirsch Auction 164, Munich
Dec. 7 Christie's Auction, New York
Dec. 7
CNA IX, New York
Dec. 7 BerklEngland Auction, New York
Dec. 7-8 Stack's Auction, New York
Dec. 7 - 10 NY International
Dec. 8 Harmer Rooke Auction , NY
Paeonia, the famed tetradrachm of Dec. 9 - 10 Superior Auction, New York
King Patraos (340·315 B.C.), EF, Dec. 10 Kolbe/Spink Auction, New York
estimated at $250. The obverse Dec. 10 Holiday Coin Show,
shows Apollo with archaic eye, while Bloomington MN
the reverse depicts a ho~eman. Dec. 13 Glendining Auction, London
Dec. 27 - 30 AlA Annual Meeting, Boston
kneelinglIrregular incuse reverse, one of Jan. 4 - 7 FUN Convention, Tampa
the world's earliest gold coins, Choice Jan. 26 - 27 19th Int'l Coin Fair
VF, is expected to bring at least $2,500.
From the ancient Judaea section,
Jan. 26 - 28 Golden State Show, Pasadena CA
there is a silver shekel of the First
Jan. 27 Ponterio Auction, Pasadena CA
Revolt, 66-70 A.D., Year 2, Feb.1-4 Long Beach Expo
ChaliceIPomegranate, Meshorer 151, Feb. 3 London Coin Fair
Hendin 121, Choice EF, estimated at Feb.9-10 CNB, New York
$1,500. From the Bar Kochba Revolt Mar. 2 - 4 Great American, Santa Clara, CA
period. 132-35 A.D., a featured coin in Mar. 7 Glendining's Auction, London
the noted Year 3 telJadrachm, Lulav and Mar. 15 - 17 CICFIPonterio Auction, Chicago
e throglFacade of Temple, H- 162, Mar. 16 - 18 Northwest Show, Minneapolis
Choice condition, expected to bring
$2,000.
Other rare Roman gold aurei in ftThe
Decade Saleft include - Tiberius (14-37
A.D.), Laureate bustILivia seated. the
Holiday Coin Show to
gold "Tribute Penny", VF, $2,500.
Vespasian (69-79 A.D.). Laureate
bustJ"Paci Augusti", weig ht 7 .26
be held in Bloomington
grams, VF, $2,000. Domitian (81·96 The Holiday Coin Sho\\- is being represented are coins, tokens, paper
A.D.), Laureate bust/COS Ul divided by held on Sunday, December 10, 1989, in money and bullion from the U.S.
Cornucopia, Cohen 46, RIC 237, VF, Bloomington. Minnesota. The show
$3,000. will take place at the Holiday Inn The show offers a great opportunity
Airport. 1-494 & 34th Ave., in to purchase numismatic holiday gjfts.
A scarce sestertius of Hldrian (117·
38), Laureate bust/Galley, "Felicitati Bloomington. Hours will be from For bourse information contact Keno
Aug" above "COS Ill", Seaby 1113, 10:00 to 5:00 on Sunday. Hollister. (612) 822-8157. or write:
RIC-706, about VF. is estimated at Included in the Holiday Coin Show Moneta, Box 7451, Minneapolis, MN
$500. A sestertius of Commodus (177- are ancient and foreign coins. Also 55407.
92), Laureate bustlEmperor and Senator
standing, ftPietati Senatus", Etc., Seaby
1645, about EF and very scarce, sho uld
bring in the neighborhood of $600.
An antoninianus of Pupienus, who CLASSICAL NUMISMATIC BOURSE
was co-emperor with Balbinus for only A Private Invitational Bourse For The Collector
99 days before he was murdered in 238 Featuring major dealers of
A.D .• Laureate bustffwo clasped hands. Ancient & Early Foreign Coins
Seaby 2409, rare and a nice VF, carries
from around the country.
a $400 estimate.
The sale also features a variety of REGIONAL SHOWS HELD IN
Roman Colonial silver tetradrachms and San Francisco, CA
grouped lots. Chicago, n..
The well-illustrated "The Decade Dallas, TX
Sale" auction catalogue, together with a WasrungtOn, DC
list of prices realized following the sale. NewYork,NY
may be reserved by sending $10.00 to
Harmer Rooke Numismatists, Ltd., 3 "Value and Integrity"
East 57th Street. New York, NY 10022. For further infonnation and an invitation to the show nearest
to you, write today.
CLASSICAL NUMISMATIC BOURSE
BOX 245, DEPARTMENT I
QUARRYVll..LE, PENNSYLVANIA 17566
 XXII .The Celator.·.·:- Decem~r 1.91!9

Political tools
Coins carried news of events to far away places
by William Horr
Generally speaking, ancient Roman
coins are grouped in three general
categories: Republic, ImperatoriaI. and
Imperial, or Empire. Throughout the
over 700 years of Roman coinage
history, coins issued during all three
periods stated above were more than a
mere medium for monetary exchange.
Each coin was in essence a "little bit of
history" because each coin p::lrtrayed not
only deities and rulers, but also
commemorated some important event or
person, or carried a political. news, or
religious message.
Communication of the times was
extremely limited -- news travelled by
courier, message, and word of mouth
only. It was therefore only logical that
coins which were issued in large
quantities and passed from hand to hand
throughout the realm, would provide an
excellent means for transmitting news
and propaganda to all. Thus, we find
that the Greeks. even before the .earliest
Roman coinage period, issued coins
which carried "commercial messages",
Coins depicting a bunch of grapes
advertised a wine producing capability,
an amphora also might have indicated an
oil or wine product. Depiction of a
galley. porpoise. crab, tunny fish. or
conquest they eventually reached all
areas of the then known world,
including the British Isles.
During the Republican and
Imperatorial era, Roman coins depicted
on their obverses mostly busts of
deities, such as Roma, Apollo, Jupiter,
Venus, etc; and Roman kings, heroes
and politicians, such as King Tatius,
Ancus Martius, Pompey, Anthony,
Caesar, etc. The reverses however were
another matter. These displayed
commemorative and mythological
events in Roman history; events
referring to the ancestry of the individual
moneyers; political and religious events
such as voting, processionals, oath
taking, military and sacrificial scenes.
It is only when we arrive at the
Imperial era of Roman coinage that the
fullest utilization of coin reverses for
propaganda purposes is attained. Some
notable examples follow. Tiberius,
Emperor during Christ's lifetime, issued
a sestertius portraying him on its
reverse and seated on his throne. As a
of cities in Asia Minor which had been
damaged by earthquake, in 17 AD. Nero
told the Roman people and the world of
his great record as a peacemaker on his
bronze coin reverses. This was shown
by depicting the temple of Janus with
doors closed. since the doors remained
open only during time of war.
Commodus who is believed to have
been deranged, depicted himself on coins
as Hercules incarnate, proclaiming his
godliness to all his subjects. Marius
the usurper, who reigned but a few days
before he was "eliminated", displays on
one of his coins "c1aspeci.-hands" telling
the Roman people of his accord with the
army and the populace. This was indeed
a true pictorial political "hand shake".
Vespasian and Titus both boast of their
conquest of the Jews in the "Judaea
Capta" series which depict captive Jews
on coin reverses. Domitian does the
same for his conquest of Gennany
which displays captive Germans on a
sestertius. Trajan issued reverses
illustrating not only his Dacian
conquests but also others displaying his
public building accomplishments. such
as Trajan's column, the Danube Bridge,
and Circus Maximus. Philip I wooed
the populace through coin reverses
which reminded the people of the
nothing new!)
Nerva issued coins in the 1st century
AD with reverses attesting directly to
his enlightened and munificent reign.
One of these shows a cart with 2 mules
which refers to Nerva's relieving Roman
tax payers of the cost of posting main
roads in Italy. The legend reads
" VEHICULATIONE IT ALIAE
REMISSA n meaning "Italian road tax
remitted".
Another reverse represents Nerva's
generosity by showing him in the act of
distributing gifts to the citizens
"CONGIARIUM". A third reverse
refers to Nerva's concern for the poor by
showing a modills full of corn. The
legend alludes to the emperor's
inauguration of a special dole of com to
the city's poor -- "PLEBE!. URBANAE.
FRUMENTO. CONSTITUTO".

-
turtle on a coin may very well have
been an effort to tout the city/states
whose chief commerce was maritime --
ships and/or fishing.
It therefore followed that the Romans
likewise would exploit this excellent
means of propagandizing their people
since Roman coins were circulated not
only in Rome proper and the Italian
provinces. but through trade and
great benefactor, the legend
"CIVITATIBUS,
RESTITIJTIS n , refers to his restoration
emperor's generosity, such as certain
Philip I reverses showing wild animals
to be seen by the people in the
spectacular public shows he provided.
Reverses showing com or a modius
(com measure), or the figure of Annona
personified reminded the people of the
emperor's benevolence in providing
ASIAE, them their annual ration of grain.
(political handouts and dole systems are
Antoninus Pius issued a sestertius,
the reverse of which is Brittania facing
left. seated on a rock holding a standard
and spear, and resting her left arm on a
shield. In addition to exploiting this
ruler's campaign in Britain, this reverse
of Brittania was the original inspiration
for the "Brittania seated" reverse which
Please tum to page XXX

Harmer Rooke Numismatists, Ltd.

is Pleased to Present At Public Auction
THE DECADE SALE Of Ancient, Foreign and U.S. Coins
Friday, December 8th, 1989

Featuring:
A Selection of Ancient Greek, Judaic
and Roman Imperial Coinage

Including :
Judea Silver Shekel of First 'Revolt, 66-70 AD
Gold Staters of Alexander the Great
Persian Gold Daric of Darius III, 450-330 BC
Trajan Gold Aurcus, 98- 117 AD

Also, a selection of U.S. Commemorative COins,

High-Grade Type and Pioneer Gold
and a select group of Rare Foreign Coins.

Highlighted by:
1658 Oliver Cromwell Crown
Proof 1736 Irish Halfpenny Pattern
A Choice Group of Gennan City-State Talers

And Please Watch/or Our Upcoming:

Absentee Auction XXXIV
Closing Date: January 17, 1989
Featuring a Quality Selection of Classical Antiquities
including Artifacts from Egypt, Greece, Rome and the
Ancient Near East; Pre-Columbian Art; Tribal Arts -
Indian and Ethnographic.

Catalogue & Prices Realized - $lO ppd.

- •.0>

Harmer Rooke Numismatists, Ltd.• Harmer Rooke Galleries

Dept. C, 3 East 57th St., New York, NY 10022
NYS: 2127511900 WATS: 8002217276 FAX: 2127581713
Auctioneer NYC Lic. # 823790, 820507
The ClIIIIIO( ··· · December 1989 xxIII

AT THE N.Y. INTERNATIONAL!

IMPORTANT ANCIENT COINS '
OFFERED BY:

FORTUNA FINE ARTS, LTD.

CLASSICAL ANTIQUITIES & NUMISMATICS

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9:00 - 5:00 M-F one of the ' most active at
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Dec. 9·11 N.Y. International Numismatic Convllllian
Feb. /-4 Long Beach Coin &: Stamp Expo. L.B. Convention Gemer
May 3-6 Denver Coin Exlravaganuz
We are offering many
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There is also a great selection of
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are looking forward to meeting you."
 XXIIII
If you aren't seeing this symbol on
Byzantine
catalogues you are currently receiving
in modem Israel.
To appreciate the significance of this
coin we must return to the events
following Heraclius' triumphant return
to Constantinople. In 632 the Prophet
Mohammed died and the following year
Abu Bekr. the Imt ~ph gathered
together an Arab army that was destined
to conquer both the Sassanian empire
and a large part of the Byzantine empire
over the following few years. The two
great empires succumbed so easily
because their military resources were
weak following their recent struggle.
Heraclius himself was eJthausted and ill,
so by the time he was succeeded by his
grandson Constans 5 , all Syria and
Palestine was in Arab hands. So if our
coin is a copy of a Constans follis it
must have been struck at Diospolis after
Arab occupation.
As I suggested might have happened
during the Sassanian occupation, a
shortage of coinage must have soon
become a problem, and between about
650 AD and the reform of .the Arabic
coinage in 696, an "Arab Byzantine"
coinage was struck at a number of mints
Write for our membership list in Syria and Palestine. This was based
on Byzantine prototypeS and eventually
had all Arabic legends, but our coin
belongs to the early phases of this
coinage when legends were entirely in
Jean-Paul Divo Greek or Latin. T he most common
examples are from Damascus, but others
Secretary, I.A.P.N. have only come to light relatively
recently and more may await discovery.
Lowenstrasse, 65 The coin raises a number of
CH-8001 Zurich, Switzerland interesting questions. Was it produced
under the official authority of the Arab
conquerors or as a local initiative by the
inhabitants of Diospolis. The former
seems more likely, but if so why is
there not the slightest hint of Arab
legend or iconography'? The use of the
'NIKO' mint mark is also puzzling; this
ANCIENT COIN did not appear gn the Cons tans II
coinage which ciearly formed the
SPECIALIST prototype, although it was cornman
enough on earlier Byzantine issues. Had
GREEK, ROMAN, BYZANTINE COINS the local die engravers, presumably
AND Byzantine, forgotten the real meaning of
CLASSICAL ANTIQUITIES the mint mark: and did they possibly
associate it with the Greek word 'NIKE'
- victory.
Diospolis had actually minted coins
before, in Hellenistic times, but its
mint had been closed for hundreds of
years. However. it is an inuiguing fact
that many of the towns chosen by the
Arabs to produce coinage had been
mints in Hellenistic or Roman times.
For the third oddity we move forward
400 years to a time when the Byzantine
empire was under severe threat from the
-
Normans in Italy and from various
Turkish tribes in the Balkans and in
Asia Minor. Internally the main power
struggle was between the civilian
bureaucrats of the capital and the
military aristocracy of Asia Minor such
as the :Comneni family which
SEND $2.00 FOR CATALOG
OR $25 ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION
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EDWARD J. WADDELL, Ltd.
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The Celator December 1989
Continued .rom page XX
eventually helped to pull the empire
together again in the face of the dangers
which threatened iL However, our coin
belongs to a member of the fonner
faction, Constantine X Ducas who
reigned from 1059 to 1067.
Constantine was not a success as a
monarch, being somewhat weak and
indecisive at a time when the empire
, needed another Heraclius; but he did
! issue a handsome bronze coinage and his
folIes are among the commonest and
most attractive later Byzantine bronzes
available today. These coins (Fig. 3)
show C hrist o n the obverse (nol
illustrated) and o n the reverse are full
length figures of Constantine and his
wife Eudocia holding a labarum6
'between them. Closer examination of
the two reverses shows something very
odd - the figures seem to be bent in the
middle, but in different directions on
each coin. One of them almost looks as
if it were struck in two halves.
Examination of a number of the coins
shows that at least one in ten exhibits
this odd characteristic. How did it
occur? We can only speculate, but
perhaps the answer lies in the fact that
contemporary gold coinage was
Rscyphaten i.e. cup shaped and therefore
struck from concave and convex dies.
Very little is lrnown about Byzantine
mint practice and there is some debate
about whether the (fixed) anvil or (upper
moveable) trussle die was convex. The
folIes of Constantine X were not in the
least scyphate, but it is possible that the
die engraver. being used to making
, scyphate dies, made the trussle die
slightly conveJt by mistake. When the
coin was struck it was therefore
necessary to tilt the trussle die slightly
from vertical before striking. then tilt it
slightly in the opposite direction and
strike again, in order to get a clear
impression of both halves of the convex
die. If the die moved at all whilst it was
being tilted between strikes it would
give enctly the effect observed of the
two halves of the figures not quite
matching up. Furthennore if the coin
moved between strikes we would eJtpect
a double struck: obverse. and this is
exactly what we find on one of the
specimens above.
1 The Byzantine follis was introdu~ whan
the emperor Anastasius reformed the ooiage
in 498 AD. Previously the only bronze coin
had been the tiny nummus. The follis,
literally a bag of ooins, was equivalent to 40
nummi and usually had a large M on the
reverse. M being the Greek symbol for 40.
2 A crescent and star do sometimes appear
on the revenc of some seventh century Arab-
Byzantine ooinage (e.g. Emesa in Syria), 50
an alternative hypothesis to the one outlined
in this article would place the coin
somewhere in the Arab Byzantine Series.
3 Alexandria had its own coinage system,
the maiD denomination being the 12 nummi
coin. The follis was not minted there, so it
appears highly unlikely that the coin
illustrated here came from EgypL
4 RBy this sign may you conquer.R This
referred to Constantine's vision of th e
Christian chi-rho symbol before the battle of
the Milviao. Bridge in 312 where he defeated
his rival Maxentius.
S There was in fact a brief 100 day reign of
Heraclius' son. Heraclius Constantine. before
Constans came to the throDe.
6 The labarum was a Roman military
staDdard with the chi-rho symbol on iL
Say you saw H in
71u: GIaIor
. . . ' _.... . ..
The Ceiate, .. Deciimt>er 1989
Sandon
policy of Hellenization. Ultimately this
led to a Tarsian revolt during the reign
of Antiochus IV. This' was tile same-
monarch who attempted to impose the
worship of Zeus at Jerusalem, causing
the Jewish insurrection which
ultimately ousted the Seleucids from
Palestine.
It would appear that one offshoot of
the 'Hellenization I of Tarsus was the
eventual conflation of the Tarsian god
Sandon with the Greek god Herakles.
Indeed, Greek inscriptions have been
found from the Seleucid epoch at Tarsus
which contain the name Sandon as
either a title or surname of Herakles.
Just who was this god Sandon?
According to Ammianus Marcellinus,
an Antiochean writer of the fourth
century A.D.• Sandon was a legendary
"high-born man who came from
Ethiopia~ (H.i.U.., XIV.8.3.).
Marcellinus further noted that some
believed it was either Sandon or Perseus
(son of Jupiter and Danae) who founded
Tarsus. On the other hand, the first
century comic writer, Dio Chrysostom.
called He~akles the city's founder{ Tarsic
Discourse, XXXID.47).
In fact. the roots of Sandon can be
traced all the way back to the Hittite era.
Many generations of travelers to
Ancient Ibreez (only some 50 miles
northwest of Tarsus) have viewed a
magnificent Hittite rock carving of the
god along with an inscription in Hittite
containing his name. At Ibreez Sandon
is depicted wearing a pointed Hittite cap,
a short tunic, boots with upturned toes,
and carrying a bunch of grapes and a
stalk of com.
The collapse of the Hittite kingdom
brought an influx of Semites who
identified Sandon with their god Ba'al.
A further stage in the god's evolution
came with the Greeks who combined
Sandon's attributes with those of their
god Herakles.
Dio Chrysostom wrote that a funeral
pyre "with special magnificence" was
constructed at Tarsus in honor of
Sandon (Ibid., see above). It would
appear that the purpose of the
monument was to contain this pyre .
Yet. why a funeral pyre for the god?
Undoubtedly, it was associated with the
myth of Herakles' incendiary death on
Mount Oetna in Thessaly. According to
the myth Herakles built a funerary pyre
on the advice of the oracle of Delphi and
placed himself in it. As the flames
burnt away the hero's flesh, there was a
sudden great flash of lightning, after
which Herakles disappeared. It was
believed that he then ascended to Mount
Olympus and dwelt thereafter with the
gods. It seems that this myth was
publicly re-enacted at Tarsus with the
symbolic burning of the effigy of
Sandon/Herakles.
The Seleucid rulers chose to
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•
solemnize this significant religious
festival by striking a longlived series of
commemorative coins at Tarsus. We
find these coins in the silver
denominations of drachm and
tetradrachm, as well as in bronze (the
average size of the latter being about
20mm). The silver coin reverse
inscriptions contain names and epithets
of the respective Seleucid rulers, while
the bronzes bear only the Greek name of
the city, TAPEEQN. Thedrachmsand
some of the bronzes show Sandon
standing on a homed lion, but the
tetradrachms and a few bronzes are a bit
more elaborate, depicting the god upon
the lion and standing within the
monumental structure (see Figure 1).
The monument itself is shown as an
. altar/pyre bound with garlands, and
surmounted by a conical structure, or
canopy, with an eagle on its peak. On
the platform of the edifice stands the
deity wearing a tunic and carrying a bow
and quiver. With one hand Sandon
. presents an offering of some sort. On
either side of the lion are two enigmatic
conical objects, perhaps twin sources of
the ritual rue.
According to Barclay Head (Historia
Nwnorum) the usurper Alexander I Bala
was the first Seleucid to issue the
Sandon commemorative type. Yet,
Percy Gardner (BMC: The Seleucid
Kings) first lists the type under
Antiochus VII Sidetes, about a decade
later. At any rate, the period of about
150-140 B.C. marks the beginning of
the coinage, and various Seleucids
struck the type until the Armenian,
Tigranes I, fell heir to the Seleucid lands
a little over a half century later. Since
the bronze coinage was of a municipal
type which was not linked to the
monarchs, these coins continued to be
struck until the advent of the Roman
epoch.
Several of the Roman emperors
continued the Sandon commemorative
tradition by issuing some impressive
large bronzes ranging in size from
25mm-35mm. However, immediately
observable on these bronzes is a
fascinating addition to the monument--a
new, larger base and a semicircular
canopy supported by two male figures
wearing Phrygian caps (See Figure 2).
Whether this addition was intended to be
primarily functional--that is, to help
protect the aging monument--or simply
to give an added measure of ornament is
anyone's guess. Nor can we find a clue
as to the identity of the two added
figures, although the Dioscuri would be
a reasonable conjecture. If in fact the
figures represent the Dioscuri, then we
might have some basis for surmising
that the Romans equated Sandon with
Jupiter.
xxv
Continued from page I
The Figure 2 coin reverse is of
interest also in another way--its
inscription calls Tarsus by the title
"Hadrianes." Perhaps this is in memory
of a benefaction made earlier by Hadrian.
Coins of the later emperors do not
contain this word.
The mid-third century A.D. marks
the latest and final appearance of the
Sandon commemorative coins. The city
was captured by the Sassanid Shapur in
260 A.D., and the Romans could not
regain it until much later. Nowadays
little is known archaeologically about
Figure 2 Roman Tarsus because the major
Roman bronze (3Smm) struck by ponion of it lies buried beneath the
Marcus Aurelius (161-180 AD) modern town. This renders the
The inscription reads: numismatic legacy of Tarsus all the
AtJPIANHC TAPCOY more important, for by it we gain our
only glimpse at this true marvel of the
MHTPorrOtJE!2C ancient world
Dr. Hubert Lanz
NUMISMATIK Luitpoldblock
LANZ
Maximiliansplatz 10
0-8000 MUDChen 2
West Gennany
MONOIEN Tel. (49) (89) 29 90 70
Fax. (49) (89) 22 07 62
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MIXED l.QI QE 1ll BRONZES
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important periodso! ancient Israel. An excellenlopportunity for dealers:
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Forimmediate shipment send order WIth payment to:
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catalogues Authentication Coin Photography
 X'XVI "
Islamic Coins
the caliphate in principle, but claimed
the right to administer their own affairs
independently of caliphal decree. The
coins of the first group are invariably
distinct from issues of the caliphate, to
the extent that most of them omit the
name of the caliph in favor of the local
potentate, who is sometimes accorded
titles with a caliphal ring, such as the
Shiite rebel in Mazandaran. ai-Hasan b.
Zayd, who takes on the title of al-Da' j
ila al-Haqq (-He who summons to the
· Truth," Le .. to God).37 Other sectarian
rebels struck coins at Nasibin in 256. at
Qazwin in 268, at two mints in
southern Iraq from 258 until the early
260s. etc. Some of these issuers place
,new Koranic inscriptions on their coins,
as siog!4ls intended to characterize thew
movements.
The second group distinguished
their coinage rather more subtly. if at
all. They retained the name of the
caliph. ordinarily in its usual place
beneath the reverse area. Some,. such as
the Tahirids (205-258/822-873). never
placed their name ·on coins during the
second phase.38 Their successors in
Khorasan and Transoxiana. the
Samanids. only added their names in
281. barely into the third phase (fig.
· 37). Most eventually put their names
on the coinage. either beneath the
obverse area or beneath the name of the
caliph on the reverse. at first usually
just their personal names. later as the
son of so-and-so. All of these appear to
have regarded themselves juridically as
servants of the caliph. irrcru>ective of
whether they had originally \been his
appointees or not. The first of this ilk
to adorn the coinage with his name was
the Saffarid adventurer. Ya'qub b. al-
Layth. whose firs t coins were struck at
B anjhir ( m odern P anj s he r in
Afghanistan) in 259. On these coins,
the name Ya'qu b is placed beneath the
obverse area, just as the name Ja'far (the
personal name, or ism, of al-Mufawwid,
son of the caliph) is place9 on the
properly caliphal issues struck between
257 and 260 (figs. 34. 35). Ya'qub
never used the patronymic on the
coinage. The first to do so seems to
have been Ahmad b. Tulun. the ruler of
Egypt since 254/870. who first placed
his name on the coinage in 266, in the
form" Ahmad ibn Tulun" (fig. 36).
A careful study of the earliest
coinage of the regional emirates shows
that the addition of the names of local
dynasts to the coinage usually follows
their acknowledged attainment of power
by an interval of years or decades. Thus
the distinction between purely caliphal
and local dynastic coinage is somewhat
arbitrary, and left to convention. It has
become customary to categorize as
caliphal issues all coins that lack the
name of a local dynast, even when it is
well known that such a dynast was in
· contro1.39 Thus, for example, the coins
of Misr struck between 254 and 265,
even though undisputably issued under
the authority of Ahmad b. Tulun, are
regarded as Abbasid rather than Thlunid,
precisely because they lack Ahmad's
name. From an historical perspective,
this division between Abbasid and local
dynastic issues is unsatisfactory, for it
obscures the continuity of the coinage at
each mint. Chronological
categorization by mint or province has
proven more fruitful for utilizing the
coins as historical documents, for which
reason many major museum collections
have been reorganized by mint and
province, rather than according to the
traditional dynastic ordering. However.
for the sake of a general overview of the
coinage. the dynastic approach is more
The Celator December 1989
• ".Continued from page I
tractable and will thus be followed in
the present series of articles.
A cursory examination of the mints
operating in the 270s illustrates the
extent to which the caliphate had
deteriorated during this period. The
provincial mints of Fars were striking
Saffarid coins. with the name. of 'Amr
ibn al-Layth or his son, Muhammad ibn
'Amr. The central Iranian lands 31. al-Mutawakkil, AR dirham, al- Mutawakkiliya 247. The caliph founded this city,
acknowledged the Dulafid prince. Ahmad named for himself, in 246, and struck coins there in 247. Upon his death in 247,
ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz. Egypt. Syria, and the settlement was abandoned. Coins of this mintplace, dated only 247, are rare.
the western fringes of the Jazira were
Ttrlunid territories, with coins in the
name of Khumarawayh ibn Ahmad.
The Caspian littoral in northern Iran
was the property of the Zaydi Shiites,
who struck a few coins in the name of
their own leader, without mention of the
caliph. Parts of eastern Khorasan
acknowledged either the Banijurid ruler,
Ahmad ibn Muhammad, or one of his
rivals. The Sajids in Arminiya and
adjacent territories, as well as the
Samanids in Khorasan and Transoxiana,
did indeed prQduce purely Abbasid coins 32. al-Mu'tazz (251-255/866-869), AV dinar, Summa man Ra'a 251.
at the mints under their control, but
they are distinguishable from true
Abbasid coins by the omission of the
name or title of the vizier, Salih b.
Makhlad. known on the coinage as
Dhu'J· Wizaratayn, "possessor of the two
vizierates." ·whose name or initial
figured on the Abbasid coinage struck in
metropolitan mints from 269 to 274. 40
Purely Abbasid coins were struck only
at several mints in Iraq and Khuzistan,
at al-Maws il i'n the Jazira, and
wmewhat surprisingly. at San' a in the
Yemen (fig. 39). As a temporal power,
the caliphate had sunk to being one, and
no longer the largest of a Quiltwort of 33. al-Mu'tamid (256-279/870-892), A V dinar, Fars 273. Citing the heir al-Muwaffaq,
autonomo us or qu as i-autonom ous brother of the caliph, by his honorific laqab, al-Nasir Ii-Din Allah, and the second in
dynastic enterprises. line to the succession, Ahmad, son of al-Muwaffaq.
The coins of the second phase are
relatively scarce, whence the phase has
been dubbed the "rare period" in Abbasid
coinage. In fact. mint output must have
been considerable. albeit much reduced
from the first phase, for the numbers of
dies used at the major mints seems to
have been large. In, a sample of 89
dirhams of al -Mu'tazz. all struck at
Surra man Ra'a in 251. a rath~r
common mint/date combination. I was
able to identify 60 distinct obverse dies,
statistically indicative of a large output. 34. al-Mu'tamid, AV dinar, Misr 260, citiog Ja'far, Le., al-Mufawwid, heir to the western
In the western half of the caliphate, gold portion of the Caliphate.
was clearly more important than silver,
which predominated in the east. Since
most pre-Second World War collections
relied heavily on Syria and Egypt as
sources of material, the gold coinage has
been more adequately published than the
silver, which derives primarily from
eastern, especially Iranian, finds, though
in recent years, it has become clear that
the silver coinage is by no means so
elusive. There are great variations in
output from one mint to another, both
for the silver and the gold. For the
dirhams. the mint of Madinat al-Salam 35 . S af~a~d, :a'qub ibn al-Layth (253-2651869-879), AR dirham, Banjhir 260. Note the
o utproduces all others, though slDlllanty of this local issue to the caliphal issue of Misr struck in the same year
periodically. other mints seem to have (00.34). The name of the local ruler, Ya'qub, without the palronymic, appears
beneath the obverse.
become substantial producers. especially
Surra man Ra'a. and at times, Isbahan,
Fars, Wasit, al-Ahwaz. al-Basra. and
others. Certain mints, such as Misr.
Arminiya. al-Kufa, Mah aI-Kufa, etc.,
even though active over long intervals,
remain rare. The same holds true for the
dinars, though the rankings of the
various mints are different, with Misr
consistentiythe cruef producer.
The metrology of \ltis period merits
a detailed study, it is rJuing this period
that the coinage, both m gold and silver,
loses the appearance of coinage to a 36. Tulunid, Ahmad ibn Tulun (254-270/870-884), A V dinar, Misr 266. The name of the
fixed standard, and becomes a coinage loc~l ruler appears beneath that of the caliph on the reverse, with the patronymic,
whlch appeared in this year for the first time. Beneath the obverse is the name of
Please turn to page- XXVII al-Mufawwid, the heir to the western portion of the calip~te. as on no. 34.
The Celator December 1989
Islamic Coins
mat is clearly intended to be traded by
weight, not by count.
There seems little doubt mat the
concept of a dinar of approximately me
same weight as me first phase dinar
(circa 4.25g) was retained, but
increasingly, over the course of the
second phase, me range of individual
weights broadens, a phenomenon mat
continued into the third phase, and
would characterize most subsequent
Islamic gold coinage until the 15m
century. Gold coins came mus to be
stamped chunks of bullion, on which
37. al~Mu'tadid (279-289(892-902), AR dirham, al-Shash 280. Actually a Samanid issue
in the name of the caliph. The Samanid ruler. Isma'il ibn Ahmad, added his own me coin design was guarantor of purity,
name to the coinage in the following year. not of weight. For most of me next
600 years, most Islamic coinage (except
in me Maghreb and India) consisted of
such "stamped bullion." In most series,
.the heaviest examples outweigh the
lightest by double or more, clearly a
situation in which me coins could not
be traded by count
Such proportions were not attained
during me second phase, where dinar
weights, even by me end of the phase,
cluster about me old 4.25 gram standard,
ranging from about 3.5 at the lightest to
occasional issues surpassing 4.4 grams.
I The extent of weight variation seems to
38. al-Mu'tadid, AR dirham, Amid 286. Note the single obverse margin. This
remarkable coin is the first true commemorative in the Islamic coinage, for it is
vary from mint to mint, being least
inscribed, "struck at Amid in the year of its conquest, which is six and eighty and extensive at Misr, rather more so at
two hundred," In this year, Amid was taken from the Byzantines by an Abbasid eastern mints, most blatant at al-Rafiqa
""'y. in the Jazira. At Misr, it is clear that
more than just lip-service continued to
be paid to the weights of individual
specimens until at least me end of me
reign of the Fatimid caliph al-Musta'Ji
in 49511101. 41 A potentially rewarding
avenue of further study would be the
comparison of weight standards and their
implementation at me various Abbasid
mints, in all phases, not just the
39. al-Mu'tadid, AV dinar, San'a 289.
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40. al-Muktafi (289-2951902-908), AR dirham, Harran 292. A rare mint in the Jazira.
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AUCTIONS - PRICE LISTS
41. al-Muqtadir (295-320f908-932), AR dirham, Arrajan 303. Note the broad fian and
weak, uneven strike, typical of many of the provincial mints during this and sub-
sequent reigns. Arrajan is a rare mint for the Abbasids, and struck only silver.
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NUMISMATICA ARS CLASSICA AG
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42. aI-Muqtadir, AV dinar, Madinat ai-Salam 306. Because of its broad outer marginal
spaces, this dinar is considered to be a presentation strike.
XXVII
Continued trom page XXVI
second.
One notable development during the
second phase was the adoption of a
separate, lighter dinar standard at San'a
in the Yemen (figs. 29, 39). At least
through the year 237, me Yemeni dinar
remained at the 4.25 gram standard.
After the decade of 238-248, during
which no Yemeni dinars are attested, the
mint resumed production with a large
issue in 249, .i~ the name of ai-
Musta'in, but!with.... a new standard of
about 2.90-2.95 grams, thus
approximately the same as the
traditional silver dirham. 42 This
standard was retained until at least the
year 300, but replaced in 305 or 306 by
-
a lighter standard, about 1.9, or about
213 of the previous standard (fig. 44) .
The coins from 249 until 291 are
identical to contemporary Abbasid dinars
of other mints, except for the weight
standard, and increasingly, the
characteristically Yemeni calligraphy.
The same phenomenon is
observable in the silver coinage.
Throughout the second phase, the
nominal standard appears to remain the
same as before. but the frequency curves
become blunter over the years,
suggesting mat an al marco coinage
was becoming me norm. As with the
gold, there seem to be variations from
one mint to another, though less
noticeably so, at least from casual
observation. In Yemen, we have both <.
normal size dirhams and miniscule coins
apparently known as sudaysi, i.e.,
"sixth," of which extant examples
indeed show that a nominal standard of
somewhat under 0.50 grams was
Please tum to page XXVIII
 XXVIII
Islamic Coins
employed, about one sixth of the
nocmal dirham. 43
> The most common gold mint
during the second phase is MisT, and
examples of common dates in average
condition fetch from $150·200. The
most common silver coins, particular of
Madinat aI-Salam, sell for about 525-50
in very fine, but the dirhams of the two
ephemeral caliphs. al-Muntasir (247-
248/8 61-862) and al-Muhtadi (255-
2561869-870>" are far more expensive,
selling for about $500 and 5250,
respectively, in very fme condition.
(Third pbase) Seven caliphs
succeeded one another during the 55
years that constituted the third phase of
Abbasid coinage. The history of this
eTa is characterized by the increasing
shift in real authority from the caliph lO
his amirs. and by the tendency for
mjliWy and civilian powell to be vested
in the same individual, thus enabling
real centers of power to thrive outside
the effective sway of the caliph. A new
office, that of amir al-'umara ("chief
amir") was created, usually occupied by
the leading amit of whatever faction lay
on top of the scrimmage. The various
court factions challenged one another
endlessly, to the detriment of the
economic and military health of the
caliphate. This devolution of caliphal
authority to the amirs was exacerbated
by the fact that several of the caliphs,
most notably aI-Muqtadir and aI-Radi,
ascended the throne as children, protegts
of one or another of the factions.
Nonetheless. the fltSt couple decades of
the third phase witnessed the restoration
of caJiphal authority in many of the
territories that had broken away during
the darkest days of the second phase.
The Tulunid domains in Syria and
Egypt were restored to the caliphate by
2921906, as were most of the former
Saffarid lands (Fars and Kirman), the
Dulafid possessions in centtal Iran. and
all of the Jazira. But the cost of these
gains proved debilitative, for the amirs
came to arrogate ever more authority to
themselves, showing ever less interest
in the long-term viability of the
caliphate as a political power.
During this phase, the basic form
of the dinar and dirham remained the
same as during the second phase, with
the heir "mentioned, when appropriate,
beneath the obverse area, as before.
Variations in the surrounding circles
becomes more frequent, parti(;ularly at
Madinat ai-Salam, where the appearance
of additional pellets and isolated letters,
so-called "secret marks," placed directly
above or below the area legends on
either or both faces of the coin, also
becomes increasingly common. For
some years in the decade of the 300s, as
many as ten or more such variants
(circles, pellets, and initials) can be
observed at Madinat ai-Salam in a single
year. The signifteance of these symbols
remains obscure, though it seem logical
that they were applied consciously,
rather than capriciously.
Towards the end of the phase, the
name of the chief amir appears on the
coins from time to time. The first was
Husayn b. al-Qasim, cited on the coins
by his laqab (honorary title) 'Amid al-
Dawla on the second issue of 320 (fig.
45). This title was bestowed upon him
by the caliph al-Muqtadir in a desperate
and unsuccessful attempt to nip an
impending coup in the bud. 44 During
the last fourteen years of the third phase,
there were four other chief amirs cited
on the coinage, Bajkam in 329 (under
both aI-Radi and ai-Muttaqi), Na.~jr al-
Dawla in 330, the same Nasir al-Dawla
together with his brother Sayf al-Dawla
The Celator December 1989
Continued from page XXVII
in 330-331,45 and TUlun in 333 (under
al-Mustakfi). These names can readiJy
be distinguished from the names of local
rulers, for they appear at all mints
remaining under caliphal control,
though ordinarily not at mints that had
reverted to local rule.
The tendency for the number of
mints to increase remained in effect
throughout the third phase, though at a
slower rate. There were, for example, 43. al-Muqtadir, AR presentation dirham, without mint name (Slnlct at Madinat al-Salam)
more than fifty mints in operation 302. This is typical of the more common sort of presentation silver or gold from
during the reign of al-Muqtadir alone. th is period. Note the absence of the mint name, the fine calligraphy, and the broad
Not all of these mints were active as margins.
Abbasid mints in every year. Some
served as the mints of local dynasties,
falling under Abbasid control only
transiently. A few were opened for just
a very short duration, such as 'Askar
Mukram in Khuzistan, which operated
only in 299, or the palace mint of al-
Qasr al-Fakhir, known only for the
years 295 and 296. In the case of the
mint of Fars, it was replaCed in 299 by
a series of three mints, Shiraz, Arrajan
(fig. 41), and Jann aba. However, both 44. al- Muqtadir, AV dinar (about 1.9g), San'a 314. An issue of the Ya'furid dynasty, but
within and outside the lands producing citing only the Abbasid caliph. therefore categorized as Abbasid.
purely Abbasid coinage, the density of
mint distribution continued to increase.
Some mints produced. a continuou s
series in one metal alongside occasional
issues of the other. Thus Misr and
Filastin struck gold almost without
interruption. but silver dirhams only
sporadically. Conversely, the mints of
Fars province produced virtually no
gold, but ample silver.
The metrology of the third phase
continues the pattern established during
the second. The frequency curve for
both dinars and dirhams becomes 45. aI-Muqtadir, AR dirham, Tarsus 320, Citing the chief amir, 'Amid al-Dawla. Coins of
somewhat flatter and more expanded. this mint are almost invariably weakly struck and Oat.
though the peaks of approximately 4.25
grams for the dinar and 3 grams for the
dirham remain essentially unchanged.
Note that the nominal dirham standard
seems to have been increased, from
somewhat over 2.9 grams to somewhat
over 3.0.
Little research has been done on the
fineness of the metal of Abbasid
coinage. To the naked eye, it appears as
though the alloy remained essentially
pure, for both the dinar and the dirham,
at virtually all mints of the caliphate.
Some pale gold issues are known,
particularly from the mints of al-Rafiqa 46. al-Radi (322-329/934 -940). AV dinar, Madinat ai-Salam 323. A particularly well
cngraved example of this mint
in the Jazira and at the three mints of
Khuzistan province. The silver seems
essentially pure at all mints. though
after the end of the third period, some of
the subsequent independent coinages
show increasing debasement of the
dirham.
One curious aspect of the third
phase is the frequent appearance of recut
mints and dates. Dies intended for one
mint were recycled for another, a
practice that suggests that all dies for
the caliphate were produced at a single
faci lity. This conclusion is not only
supported both by general historical and 47. aI-Radi, AV dinar, Misr 323. Note how this coin is much less elegant than the dinar
call igraphic considerations, but also by of the same year struck at Madinat ai-Salam (no.46). Egypt was by 323 in the
the fact that recuttings do not only hands of Mu hammad al-lkhshid, but this potentate did not add his name to the
in vo lve adjacent mints, but occur regular coinage until aboul330.
between mints in opposite ends of the
caliphate. The practice of recutting dies
for use in a different mint seems have
begun about the year 280. and stopped
during the decade of the 340s, some
years after the Buwayhid conquest of
Iraq. Recut dates, on the other hand, are
found in many other Islamic coinages,
not surprisingly, for date alterations did
not involve the shipment of dies from
one mint to another. 46
In addition to the normal currency
sues, the Abbasid caliphs issued
special coins for presentation, known as
48. al-Ml stakfi (333-3341944-946), AV dinar, Madina! ai-Salam 334. The last Abbasid
issue before the fal! of Baghdad to the Buwayhid, lind thc extinction of the caliphate
Please turn to page XXXI
as a temporal power for somewhat more than two centuries.
ThE. Celator
'. December 1989
, "
Major Art
I Anton C. Pegis, ed. /nlrodUClion to Saw .
Thomas Acquinas, (New York: Random
House, 1948) Summa Theologica Q.5.
Art.4. p. 40.
2 Joseph Alsop, The Rar~ Art Tradition.r,
(New York: Harper lind Row, 1982) pp.
107-136.
3 Ibid. pp.1- 11.
4 H.W. Janson, History of Art, (New Yolt:
Hany N. Abrams, 1977) p. 144.
5 O.K. Jenkins, Anciml Greek Coins, (New
York:: G.P. Tutnam's Sons, 1972) p. 7.
6 Dorothy Hanoah Cox, A Third Cenlury
Hoard of Tetradrachms From Gordian,
(Philadelphia: Univ.ofPennsylvania, 1953)
~. L
Hyla A. Troxell and WiUiam P. Spengler,
"A Hoard of Early Greek Coins from
Afghanistan". American N umismoric Society
Museum Notes. (New York:
Numismatic Soc., 1969) pp. 1-1.
Am.
8 Uoyd R. Laing. CoilU and Archaeology,
(london: Weidenfeld aod Nicholson, 1969)
Plate 13.
9 Leonard S. Forrer, The Art ofColl«ting
Coins, (LoDdon: Arm Publishing, 1955) p.
19.
to P. Von Zabem, Miinz~n in Brauch und
Abergla~n, (Mainz.: P. Yon Zabem. 1982)
p.72.
II Alsop, TM Rar~ ATtTradilions, p. 260.
12 Ernest Babelon, Trait~ d~s Monnais
Grecquu ~t Romain~s, (Paris: Ernest
Leroux, 190I) p. 7.
13 William Treue, Art Plunder, (New York:
John Day Co., 1961) p. 145.
14 F.W. Imhoof-Blumer and Percy Gardner,
Ancient Coins Illustrating Lost Masterpieces
ofGruk.ArI, (Chicago: Argonau.t, 1964).
IS Percy Gardner, Archaeology and Gruk
Coin Types, (Chicago: Argonaut, 1965)
reprint
16 Reginald Stuart Poole, ~Oa Greek Coins
as IIluslrating Greet. An Numismatic
R
,
Chronicle, New Series, Vol IV, pp. 236-
247.
Robinson sale scheduled
Frank S. Robinson of Albany, N.Y.
has scheduled his 15th mail-bid auction
of Ancient and Early coins with a
closing date of December 14, 1989.
The sale will contain over 600 lots,
offered without minimum bid or
reserves. A bid reduction provision will
be in effect (in Robinson's prior sales,
bid reductions have averaged nearly
20%), and there is no buyer fee,
Also, beginning with this sale,
Robinson notes that he will be offering
a new service for bidders: anyone
calling him on the final night of the
sale will be given a listing of those lots
which are felt to be going cheaply.
Jean
ELSEN,
• Public Auctions
• Numismatic Literature
• Monthly Illustrated Price Lists
• Ancient, Medieval, Islamic and Modern Coins
A venue de Ter vueren 65, Bte 1
1040 BRUSSELS-BELGIUM
Tel: 011-322-734-6356
XXVIlIl
H this calibre of numismatic art excites you -
it is only one of hundreds of beautiful
17 C.H.V. Sutherland, Art in Coinage, treasures from the past residing
(London: B.T. Bwford Ltd., 1955) pp. 49-
50. for the moment in our trays.
18 Percy Gardner, ArchMofogy andTypes of
Write for a complimentary
Greek Coins, PI. 7, #22.
19 Ibid. PI 7, #43. copy of our catalogue.
20 National Gallery of Art, The Search for
Alexander, (New York: Little, Brown and
Co., 1980) p. 183, PI 28. PRo PavL RyneaRSon
21 Gaxdner.Archaeology and Coin Types, PI
VIII #32.
P. O. Box 4009
22 Charles Sellman, Masurpil!Ces of Greek
Coinage, (Oxford: Bruno Cassircr Lld., MALIBU, CA 90265
1949) p. 112, PI 48b.
-
23 Irene Weir, The Greek Painter's Art,
(Boston: Ginn & Co., 1905) p. 142.
24 Charles Sellman. Masterpil!Ces of Greek
Coinage, p. 80.
25 Ibid. p. 93.
Guide to Biblical Coins
26 John Boardman, Greek Sculpture: TM
by David Hendin
Hardcover, 224 pages, 16 pages plates, values, cleaning coins, detecting
Archaic Period, (Norwich: Thames and
Hudson, 1978) p. 89.
27 H.A. Seaby. Gred: Coins and Th eir fOlgenes, much more. PersonaDy autographed $35.00
Values, (london: B.A. Seaby Ltd .• 1966) p.
133. #1675. nformative_ " -N'.Y. Ti~3
, ,- ItFilscmatiilg and)
"Should be a part of your library." .,
28 David R. Sear, Greek Imperial Cow and
--BtbljcaJArc~wgy Review
TMir Values, (London: B.A. Seaby Ltd.,
.;'Jndispensable•..Belongs on every serious
1982) p. 54, #569.
' ~~~·s - bookshelt." -The CeJalor
29 Gardner, Archaeology and the Types of
Gruk. Coins, PI XII #4.
30 Ibid. PI XV #21.
"We wrote the book on Biblical coins/"
31 Ibid. PI. XV #18 & 19. ASK FOR our free illustrated catalog of Jewish, Biblical,
Greek, Roman coins, weights and small antiquities.
32 Gardner, Archaeology and Types of Greek
Coins, PI V, #3.
fJ
33 Martin Price ct ai, Coins Culture and AMPHORA
History in the A"cienl World, (Detroit:
Wayne State Uoiv. Press, 1981) p. 73. ~. ~ N;;'~k,~;~
914-358-7364
34 O. Neverov, Antiqu~ Intagli os,
(leningrad: Au.rota Art, 1976) p . 73, PL IU .
35 National Gallery of Art, TM Search for
Alexander, p. l35.
.' t.
Among Greek coin highlights in this
sale will be a silver stater of Istros
featuring the unique design of two
1Jestof
heads, one upside down. There will be
offered a respectable bronze of Egypt's
Cleopatra VII and several large
7Ae CdoIor
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Ptolemaic bronzes; a selection of
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Tyre; a nice Syracusan Tetradrachm; and
a likewise pleasing Tetradrachm of
Lysimachus of TItrace.
Copies of the catalog.oflfe available
free from Robinson, whose address is
Box 2064A, Albany, NY 12220. 24 excellent articles about ancient coins and
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I
I xxx The Celator December 1989

Roman Coins Continued from page XXII

much later appeared on English bronze the world is represented by the globe Constantius. and successors in the 4th Most coin o bverses throughout the
coins for hundreds of years. which he holds in his hand, this would century AD. This fact was no doubt Roman Imperial era presented a profile
Caracalla shows himself on o ne of indicate that the ancients knew the world advertised through their coin reverses of bust or head of the reigning emperor,
his coin reverses standing and holding a was a globe, not flat as was believed in Moneta personified, along with legend and some of the se although reali stic,
globe and spear, with the legend Columbus' time. varieties of "SACRA MONET. AUOG . were far fro m fl attering. On the coin
" RECTOR ORBIS ". T hi s ET CAESS. NOSlR." reverses, however, the emperors extolled
personific ation alluded to his ability to Coinage and economic reforms were their own virtuo us atttibutes through
"stabilize the world", IncidentaUy, since instituted by Diocletian, Ma ximianus, After acceptance o f Christianity by personific ations of (PIET AS) piety;
Constantine the Gre at in the 4th century (JUSTITIA) justice ; (P AX) peace;
AD, this fact was advertised on several (VIRTUS ) courage; (SPES) ho pe;
coin reverses. One such reverse o f (FIDES) faith ; and a host of others.
Are you interested in M agne ntius illu strate s a la rge
Christogram, X "chi" imposed on a P
In conclusion, the words of Stanley
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Ancient and Medieval COins 1. Sicily, Norman kings, William 11154·

1166, Gold taJi, Spahr 88, flat spot XF $98
22. Byzantine. Constantine IV. 668-685, AE
follis, O. Faci ng bust, Rev. M, Ratto 1663
2. Ottoman Empire, Sulayman 11520- VF $25
1566, Gold sultan, Mitch 1253 VF $115 23. Constantine V 741·775, AE loIh.... O.
3. Campania, Sue"aAurvnca280-266 Facing busts of Conalantine and son, t1ev.
B.C., AR diclracllm, O. Head 01 Apollo, A. Bust of Leo III, Syracuse, 5-1569, small nan
Horseman 5-318 XF $295 VF $10
4. Macedon, Acanthos 500-424 B.C., AR 24. England. Cnull016-1035, AR penny,
hemiobol, O. Head 01 bull, R. Mill sail pattem, Ouatrebl type, 5-1157. peck marks VF $175
porous VF $50 25. England. Jolm I 1199-121S,ARp&nny.
5. Two unidentified Greek Iractional silver R. WILlEM ON LV ND. SI10rt cross type .
11 pieces VG $18 overstruck F $30
6. Macedon, Demetrios 294·288 B.C., AR 26. Edward 11272-1307, AR peony, DlJrham
tetradrachm, O. Diademoo head of Demetrios. mint, S·1423 F $22
A. Poseidon standing, S·6764, "Demetrios 27. Edward 1111327·1377, AR penny,
was the first living European ruler to strike London , S·1588 VF $35
rons wilt1 his own portrait. This pj8C(l grades 28. Henry VIII 1509·1547, AR groat, 2nd
aboIJt XF wilt1 several ancient lest OJts co;nage. S·2337, D l ondon F $45
defacing IIJ1 olt1erwise fine portraJl." $lgS 29. Scotland, Dallid II, 1329-1379, AR
7. Attika, AthellS, 449-413 B.C .. AR penny, Edinburgh, 5-5117 VG $22
tetradracllm, O. Head 01 Athellll, A. owl, test 30. France, Carolingian, Charles lt1e Bald
ClJts VF $135 840-877, AR oorlier, Courcessin, O.
8. Se1eucid kingdom, Philip Philadelphus, Morlogram of Karolus, R. Cross, MEC 860
93-83 B.C., AR tetradracllm, O. Head 01 Phil ip. CIloic& VF $125
A. Zeus seated, S-7196 XF $175 31. Franoo. Poitoo, typa 01 Charles lt1e Bald
9. Parthia, Artabanus tn 80-81, AR drachm, struck until the 12th Ceotury, AR denier, Melle
O. Bust of king. A. Kneel ing archer. 5-5826 mint crvde VF $35
VF $40 32. France, Philip Augustus 1180·1223, AR
10. Roman, M Famlusl23B.C.,AR denier, Arras mint aude F $15
d8f1arius, O. Head of Roma, A. Victory ill
quadriga, Syd 419 F $28
33. Ph ilip rv 1285-\31 5, AR gros toumois,
light pomusity VF $35
9 11. Roman, C Vibius Pansa 90 B.C., AR
denarius, O. Head 01 Apollo. A. Minerva in 34. Feudal France, Melgueil, Anonymous
quadriga. Syd 684 VF $40 counl$l2th-131t1 Century. AR denier VF $25
12. L Censorillus.... 82 B.C.• AR denarius O. 35 . Fwdal France, Solivij;ny, Anonymous
Head of Apollo, R. ::.atyr drinking from wine Abbotts, circa 1100 A.D., AR denier, O. Facing
skin, Syd 737, off center XF $45 head 01St. Maiolus, A. aoss F $20
13. Alltoninus Pius 138-161, AE sestertius. 36. Italy, Anconna, Conrad 1111138-1152 AR
R. Ubertas standing, RIC 928,Iight corrosion denaro F$9
37. Hungary, Anonymous 12th Century, AR
VF $90 denar, O. Cross, R. Small cross inside cirde
14. Marcus Aurelius 161-180, AR denarius,
A. Pietas standing, RIC 148 VF $55 Unc. $20
14 15. Julia Domllll, wile of Sep~mius SevenJS 38. Hungary, Sigismund 1387-1437, AR
denar VF$7
193·211, AR denarius, A. Pietas stand ing, C- 39. Hungary. 151t1 CenllJry, AR d8f1ar. O.
156 XF $65 Madoona and dlild, R. Arms F $8
16. Julia Massa, grandmother 01 Elagabalus, 40. Russia, Boris Godunov, 1598-1605, AR
218·222. AR denariUS, A. Laetitia standing, C- kopeck F $20
26 XF $65 41. Italy. Anoonna, circa 1400, AR
17. Constantius 11324·361. AE 3, R. Two Bo lognino Cho ice VF $24
soldiers stand ing, AntiOdl VF $10 42. Cast le, Alfonso VI, 1073-1109 AR
18. Magnus Maximus 383-388, AE 2, A. dinero Cho ice VF $50
Maximus standing C-3. VFfF $50 ,
13 19. Arcadius 383-408, AE 4. A. Arcadius
43. AIl~och, Botlamund III 1149-1"201, AR
15 standing F $6 denier, Helmet type VF $22
20. Byzantine, Anastas ius, 491·518, AE 44. Cvprus, Peter 11359-1369, AR gros
lolli s, O. Busto! ruler right, Rev. M, S·17 grand. O. King seated on ti1rone, R. cross
VGOS XF$65
21. Byzantine, COllstans 11641-668. AI: Photos 01 unpictured loIS avai lab le upon
lollis, O. Constans stand ing holding staff and request
cross, A. M, Syracuse 5-1008 F $12

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The Celator , December " 989
Islamic Coins
Geschenkmiinzen or donatives, which
differ from the normal coinage in several
ways (figs. 42. 43).47 Most are
especially finely engraved and
manufactured, often with broad rims and
unusual inscriptions. Some more
remarkable types incorporate pictorial
devices. such as a hare on some small
pieces of al-Muqtadir and al-Radi. 48
Another captures the bull and horseman
motif of the coins of the Shahi kings of
Kabul. and may have been struck in
connection with some sort of Muslim
victory over the Shahis.~9 The most
notorious of all portrays, on one side,
the caliph al-Muqtadir seated on a
throne, drinking from a cup, on the
other side, a musician seated on a
cushion, playing a stringed instrument
known as an 'uti, images hardly suitable
to a proper Muslim.50 The production
of donatives seems to have begun during
the reign of al-Mutawakkil (232-
247/847-861),51 and continued
throughout the Abbasid period and
beyond. They come in various sizes.
from 115 dinars to multiple dinars in
gold, and from small fractions to
fivefold dirhams in silver. A substantial
proportion of extant specimens show
traces of having been used in jewelry,
and it is for that reason, amongst others,
that they are considered to have been
struck for presentation purposes.
An examination of Abbasid period
hoards reveals that over the two
centuries of Abbasid silver coinage, the
circulation of dirhams became
increasingly differentiated. Hoards of
the frrst phase almost always contain a
representation of all the mints of the
caliphate, from one extremity to the
other. irrespective of where they were
found. as had been the case under the
later Umayyads as well. An excellent
example of this is the Sinaw hoard,
found in Oman and dating to 2261840-
41, just at the beginning of the second
phase, comprising coins of most
Abbasid mints from Abbasiya to Shash
(i.e., from Tunisia to Tashkent).52 A
not dissimilar range was observed in the
huge hoard found at Denizbaci, though
the proportion of North African mints
was much greater. 53 Towards the end
of the second phase, patterns of mint
distribution begin to diverge, as hoards
become increasingly restricted to the
products of relatively nearby mints. By
the third phase, this localization is even
more pronounced. The Isfahan hoard.
buried in 325/936-37. contained only
three coins of western mints (i.e., of the
regions of Egypt, Syria, and the Jazira)
out of 568 coins with determinable
mint. 54 On the other hand, later
Abbasid hoards from Syria and the Jazira
contain an abundant representation of
these mints, as much as 50% or
more. 55 What these hoards suggest is
that from the middle of the second phase
onward, Abbasid dirhams, for the most
part, ceased to travel throughout the
caliphate, but remained close to their
place of minting, increasingly so as the
end of the independent caliphate is
approached. 56 One reason for this
might be a diminution of inter-
provincial trade within the caliphate. A
more likely explanation, however,
seems to lie in the method of payment
of official emoluments, which were no
longer funneled through the central
treasury, but collected directly by the
official from territories whose revenues
were assigned to him as his salary.
Dirhams or dinars from various parts of
the empire would no longer become
thoroughly mixed, but would tend to
remain closer to their sites of
production. As the political fabric
loosened, this process would naturally
be further encouraged. with the result
that as the Abbasid caliphate began to
unravel, increasingly differentiated local
currencies emerged, harbingers of the
coinage of the newly autonomous or
independent dynasties. These currencies
will form the subject of subsequent
articles in this series.
35Located in the Jazira and Iraq, plus one mint in
Khuzistan.
36Thi s process is often regarded as a sort of
Islamic feudalism, but de spit e certa in
~semblances, it was materially different from its
European counterpart. The questions raised in this
paragraph are the subject of intense study and
SIlI1'OU.nded by controversy. For an interesting but
unorthodox analysis, see M. Shaban, Islamic
History: A Nt w/lIttrprelaJion, Cambridge 1976,
especially pages 115 ff.
37 An example of this type, struck at Jurjan in
268, has been pub lished in the Stor.! Velinge I
hoard (no. 2433, iIluSlr.ued).
38Some ea rlier coins, struck in various mints
between 205 and 211, are tr.lditionally regarded as
Tabirid, and bear mention of the name of the
Tahirid amir. 1bese have been studied in detail by
Eduard von Zambaur, ·'Contributions ~ la ~
numismatique orientale,'· NumismatiscM U itlUlg,
Bd. 37 (1905), pp. In ff.
39This was not always the case, in particular for
the Tabirids. Major catalogs of the 19th century,
such as Lane-Poole catalog of the British Museum
collection, continue to assign all Kborasanian and
Transoxanian dirhams and dinars of the years 205 -
258 to the Tahirids, even though after 211, the
Tahirid name never graces the coins.
40 A reference to the fact that Salih was 'Oilier in
both halves of the caliphate, that administered by
the caliph·s son, al-Mufawwid, and thai of his
brother, al-Muwaffaq, formally divided in 261.
41 Bu1 nOl continuously, for the weight range in
Egypt does become e;l(tensive during the first half
of the 4th/10th century, from the reign of al-
Muqtadir until the end r;J; lhe Ikhshidid period in
358/969.
42This weight, more or less equivalent to the
canonical diiham, was known as qafla in Yemen,
and was used as the reference value for many other
standardS. Thus, for eumple, the muzaffari
dirham introduced in 649/ 1251 was described as
weighing a half plus an eighth of a qafia, i.e., 518
qafia (see N.M. Lowick, '·The Mansuri and the
Mabdawi dirham,'· in the Numismatic Chronick
1983, p.123; Lowick misinterpreted the text,
believing that two distinct coin weights, 112 and
118 of a qafla were intended, whereas the Arab ic
text is clear that a single coin is intended,
weighing 112 + 1/8, i.e., 518 of a qafia).
43 These Yemeni silver coins are extremely rare,
with perhaps just two full-size dirhams and fewer
than a dozen sudaysis known. I am quite surprised
that no hoards of earl y sudaysi s have come to
light. Later sudaysis, struck by th e Rass id Imams
during the years circa 293-324/906-936, have been
found in very large numbers, including a hoard of
4000+ specimen s reported in late 1988 ill the
San'a suq.
44Thus there were three issues in 320, the first
bearing only the name of the caliph al-Muqtadir,
the second with the name of ' Amid al-Dawla added
beneath the reverse area, and third, after the murder
of at-Muqtadir, in the name of the new catiph, al-
Qahir. The name ' Amid al-Dawla has often i?een
misread as 'Imad al- Dawla, the title of the
Buwayhid ruler 'Ali b. Buwayh, thus giving the
false impression that Buwayhid ascendancy over
the caliphate began already in 3201932, fourteen
years earlier than the correct date (3341946) .
451bese two brothers were of the long-established
Hamdanid family of al-Mawsi!, and were the
founders of the Hamdanid dynasty, which became
effectively independent at al-Mawsil in 331, and
had seized most of the Jaura and parts of Syria by
the time of the Abbasid collapse in 334.
46See the e;l(cellent study on this subj ect by L.
!lisch, "Stempelveranderungen an islamischen
MUnzen de s Mittelalters als Qu eUe zur
MUnzstlittenorganisation," in Acles du 9bne
COllgr~s /nlemaliono.l th Numismalique, Bern
. 1979, pp. 777-783. The list of known reruuings
can DOW be expanded sevcralfold.
47 An excellent though somewhat preliminary
study of islamic GeschenkmUnzen has been
published by Lutz Bisch, "MUnzgeschenke und
'Geschenkmllnze n in der mittelalterlichen
iSlamischen Welt," Mwtersche NumismaliscM
ZeilUIIg , 14 (1984), pp. 7-12, 15-24, 27-34, and
15 (1985), 5-12 (all published, further sections
were promised but have not yet appeared) .
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Occasional Lists
XXXI
Continued from page XXVIII
Citations by Ilisch number refer to these articles.
48I1isch B TI, 1-3.
49 l1isch B I, 1-4.
50tlisch 9. The original of this coin, formerly in
Berlin, has disappeared, but sevenl casts have
SUNived.
51 llisch , op. cil ., vol. 14, pp. 15- 16, cites
several earlier eumples, two each of al-Amin
(nos. I & 2) and al- Ma ' mun (nos. 3 & 4).
Although not illustrated, the first two seem indeed
to be donatives, but the pieces of al-Ma'mun are
probably ordinary dirhams of the Iype that cite al ·
Rida as heir.
52 N .M . Lowiek, ·'The Sinaw Hoard of Early
Islamic Coins," Tke JoW'",,1 of Oman Studies,
vol . 6 (1983), pp. 199-230.
531. Armk, Denizbaci Definesi (_ Ttlrk Tarih
Kurumu Yayinlarindan, VII, Seri - Sa. 48),
-
Ankara 1966. The proportional representation of
the various regions of the caliphate can vary
considerable in first phase and early second phase
hoards , a phenomenon that bea rs furth er
investigation.
54N.M. Lowick, "An Early Tenth Century Hoard
from Isfahan," The Numismatic: Chronic/I, 7th
series, v. 15 (1975), pp. 110-154.
55Few such hoards a~ published. A hoard of224
dirhams from S.E. Turkey, dating to 2911903-904,
contained 154 coins of the mints in Syria and the
Jalira (Royal Numismatic Society, Coill Hoords,
VI (1981), p. 76, DO. 273.
56rbe picture is much distorted by the domination
of North European hoards, principally from
Scandinavia and the Balkan coast, which do not
~f1ect accurately what was circulating in various
parts of the caliphate. There is a large literature
on the North European hoards, but very few Near
Eastern boards have been publ ished.
State: Zip: _ _ __
The Celator
P.O. Box 123
Lodi, WI 53555
 XXXII The Celator December 1989

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.1;he Gelator December wa9 XXXIII'

Lucien Birkler CALVIN J. ROGERS

p: . <
& Co. 'l\RTI-ru~ J. LIN~
Professional Numismatists Classical Ancient Coins ancient coins
Numismatics and Antiquities

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price ranges. For free catalog contact:
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Numismatist
THOMAS D. WALKER
P.o. Box 29188 Dept. C
San Antonio, TX 78229
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 XXXIlIl The Celator December 1989
, .. ,...... "

Letters Continued from page II

The two lead articles in the
November 89 Celator presented a
remadcable contrast to one another.
Fint, Stephen Album continued his
outstanding running series on early
Islamic coinage. As usuaJ the article
was direct and highly informative. (I
really hope that once the series is
completed a reprint will be offered.
Walker's books on Islamic coinage are
48 and 33 years old at this point.
Album's study is probably the bes t
English language survey available of
recent vintage.)
Second, Professors Moon and Plass
presented what I considered to be an 00d.
rambling, running commentary on the
comments of Plotinu s. The
In OIU' opinion, the article was insightful.
coherent and scholarly. as well as thought
prOYOlcing - lhe kind of article we actively
sed CUId promoze.)
••••• Specialist in Ancient Coins AR.60S
also SlOC/c World Minor CDitu, Medah.
CrawfU. Artifacu. Boob and Coin cases ~UMlSMATlCS
Our illvell10ry is amoog the filleSl in America,
I have seen several issues of the Anractive Quality
due 10 maintaining the most active convention
paper which I have enjoyed very much. Greek & Roman Ancient Coins
sdledule of all ancienl a)ln dealers, we buy and
but it is not easy to pick up a copy in leila tremendous sele<:tion of Ililypes d Price Lists
this area at the local coin shops. numismatic materiaJ. Auction Re presentation
Among your recent issues I Want List Service
ESPECIALLY NEED
especially e njoyed the Aug ust paper P. O. Box 4102
Gold and Sliver of the 12 Caesars
with the fine article about Seleucid Clifton, NJ 07012
We aHeno:! and will represent you al major
coinage by Larry E. KcK inne y. (201) 744 - 8146
auctions. In the pa5f. two years we have
Hellenistic numismatics is a n area of
special interest for me_ Thank you for completed five ICl$ of !he 12 Caesars in gold
your fme publication. GEORGE M, BEACH

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numismatic content of the entire article
was oblique and essentially contained in Numiscellaneous
James Seaver p.o. Box. 1l3. Owosso, M148867
only one paragraph. In fact, the one
coin illustrated with its legend said more Kansas (517) 634-5415
Over 20 years in business
than the enure article about coinage art. (Sorry. bul The CelaJor is sold only through
pages,
It would be interesting if you poned subscriptions.) remember to
other readers concerning the article on
say you saw It in
Plotinus.
My subscription to Dec. 1992
••••• The Professional Directory
summarizes my overall assessment of is your index to a variety
The Celator. Keep on printing. of sources and services

FA. Libertl10re
Massachusetts

(TIlL article about Plotinu s and his

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philosophy if beau!] and art was not wrillen
especially for the numismatist. We felt.
howa>er. lhal the impact of his philosophy
on Roman celators would be obvious enough Rates:
IlOIlO require a ~Dick and Jane trealmenl. $5.00 for the first 20 words, 20¢ each additional word.
H

Reasonably priced ancient coins and Special offers: Walker - Metr o logy
artifacts. Free price list on request. R oman Silver Coinage. 3 vols, $75

Collectors Clearing House Hugh Kramer, PO Box 6914. Santa

Maria. CA 93456.
The following individuals have requested lhal their names and addresses
British copp er co ins and tokens,
be shared ill order to stimulate COnlacts with other collectors. Persons ancient to modern. Free price lists.
wishing to have this infonnalion published - free of charge - may write to Simon Cordova. Box 2096, Citrus
The Celator. P.O. Box 123. Lot:fj WI 53555. Heights, CA 956 11; 916-96 1-9937.
Jack J. Silverstein
Rom a n coins: Italian collector sells
2180 Beechwood Knoll
very fine duplicates accumulated over
Tallahassee, FL 32301 the last 25 years - will consider trade
Roman Republican and
proposals - s till actively buying
early Empire silver. Romans - write to: Giorgio. P.O. Box
704, Road Town. British Virgin Islands,
West Indies.
NEW! POSTPAID! "S ur vey
Numismatic Researc h " (Ancient,
Medieval. Modem) Soft 3V (1.119 pp.)
$32.50. Carson-Kent; uLate Roman
Bronze " $ 18.50. Renunett; "Chinese
Charms-Amulets" .$14.50. Morgan;
"Etymais" Soft .$ 10.50. Miller;
"Inves tor's Handbook" (Anc ients)
$14.50. Devensky. 9416 Longmeadow.
Boynton, FL. 33436
MACROPHOTOGRAPHY -- For
artifacts, Coins, and stamps. We have
the lenses, stages, and patience.
Pittsburgh and Tri-State. For display.
sales, or presentation. Joan and Lois.
Subscribe to the only full service newspaper (412) 343-9607, 0 ' (412) 343-3819.
specializing in ancient coins and antiquities: FREE COIN ($9.95 value) with
__________ Clip & Mail ________ _ purchase of new book, Collecling
Roman Coins. A complete introduction
to Roman coins; including historical
(was $110); Arsdell - Celtic Coinage
Britain, $67.50; Catalog of Roman
R ep. Coins Kestner Museum Hanover .
German text, 250 plates• .$85. All
postpaid. Ask details about cataJogs of
Byzantine. Greek & Roman Imp. coins
and Greek Terracottas in Kestner
Museum and about unbeatable prices on
R.I.C. and Seaby books. Want lists
welcome (books and coins). Stoffel
Vogelaar, Mulrany, Westport, Mayo,
Ireland.
The other ancients: A fr i c a.
M ideast. India. Southeast Asia. the
Orient. Primitive Monies. Books, too.
Free list. Semans, Box 22849P,
Seattle, WA 98122.
Computer filin g (IBM): List, Sort,
Prin t out your collection . Easy.
powerfu l. Shareware. $ 10 postpaid.
Bob's, 100 Overlook. Willow Grove,
PA 19090.
OVERPRICED? OVERGRADED?
Our ancients and antiq uities are
conservatively priced and graded. Try
us! We have Greek, Roman. medieval,
and coins of many areas. Dorney's, Box
493362C, Redding, CA 96049-3362.
G reek , Roman, Medieval coins.
Monthly catalogs with very reasonable
prices and discounts issued for 21 years.
Francis J. Rath, Box 266. Youngstown.
NY 14174.

•
• Please include me as a subscriber to The Celator:
•
•
background, identification guides, and
pricing infonnation fo r thousands of
YOU MAY OBTAIN
LARGE TAX REFUNDS
~donating your ruplicate coins and

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• Name: • s ps to heJ~ handcapped children. For
coins in different grades. Generously free useful in ormation arid the new 1985
• Address: • illustrated. A perfett introduction for rules (wrtt1en by a tax-attomey) write;
• City: State:_Zip: • beginnners and a valuable reference for THE NUMISMA11C INSTITUTE
everyone. Order now and receive P.O.Box7476Ch~·~ IL60680
: Enclose $24.00 for 12 issues (u.s. and Canada; $48 All other addresses.) : absolutely free a Roman bronze coin
• Mail To: The Celator, P.O. Box 123, lodi, WI 53555 • mounted in a handsome display ready for
Nov_ 89 Trivia Answer:

-------------------------
framing. $14.95 plus .$3.00 shipping H

to Laurion Pu blishing, 421-3 Amherst "Plotinus"

Street, Suite 206C. Nashua, NH 03063.
 ' .. ," .. ",' .
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The Celator . December 1989

Pajd Adv8ftlsement
xxxv

The NY International
"The Greatest Show on Earth"
Saturday, Dec. 9
Sunday, Dec. 10
Monday, Dec. 11

Just make sure you see us there

We will be happy to represent you at

• Victor England Auction, Dec. 7 -

• Christie's Auction, Dec. 7
• Harmer Rooke Auction, Dec. 8
• Stack's Auction, Dec. 8

• Superior Auction, Dec. 10

All will have ancient coins. Although you can always

bid in the book, we strongly recommend
you use an auction representative. Please contact us for
further information on these auctions at our New Jersey office.
Stay tuned for the January 1990 issue of The Celator for an
in-depth eyewitness account of the modern version of
-
The Gladitorial Games.

fJJr. .5fmoIJ:R. &:Jo",

Rare Coins & Classical Arts Ltd.
"Specialists in Museum Quality Coins"
Member: ANA, ANS, SAN, AINA, INS, Fellow RNS
P.O. Box 374
South Orange, NJ 07079
P.O. Box 699
Palm Desert, CA 92261
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Phone: (201) 76H1634 Phone: (619) 345·7161
.
XXXVI The Celator December 1989

• Harlan J. Berk, Ltd.

JUSTIN II
BYZANTINE COINS 565-578
CHERSON

78. Follis. (14.72 gms.). XEPCWNOC Justin (on left) and

Sophia standing facing, both nimbate, he holds globus

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cruciger and Sophia holds cruciform sceptre. Large M;
above, cross; to left, Tiberius II (1) standing facing, •
nimbale, holding long staff surmounted by chi-rho; below,
exergual line. DOC. 291 (Maurice Tiberius), MID . 159
(Maurice Tiberius), 58. 603 (Maurice Tiberius), 8erk 357
(Juslin II). EF, chocolate brown patina, nice nan and
surfaces, very rare. (3000)
A citluie rarity. BA. Anoxin in hjs book., MOHETHOE
.dE.tO XEPCOHECA(J 977, coin #3/7), has r~allribuud
tM coiru of this type thal do not IN!ar the name of MalU"ice
PUBLIC AUCTION but only tilt! ~tMic of Chusofl to Jus/in JJ which js th e
accepl~d altriblllion now.

December 7,1989
New York City

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A Definitive Offering of Byzantine Copper Coins
Featuring
79. 4 Pentanummia (= half-Collis). (7.01 gms.). XEPCQNQC
An Important European Collection ojCoins Same types as previous (Berk 357) but on reverse large A
instead of M. DOC. 301 (Maurice Tiberius). MlB . 161b
oj the (Maurice Tiberi us), 58 . 610 (Maurice Tiberius), 8uk )58
Western Mints (Justin D). EF, reddish-brown patina. extremely rlIe. (3500)
One of thl! great rariti~s of the ByzGIllilUl copper series!
and
Several Highly Important American Collections
oj JUSTINIAN II
FIRST REIGN
Byzantine Coppers 685-695

HARLAN J. BERK CONSfANI1NOPLE

CHICAGO,IL VICTOR ENGLAND 226. Follis. (9 .01 gms.). 685/686. Fragmentar y l egend
( ... NIANUS ... ). C rowned bust facing, with short belId,
QUARRYVILLE, P A wearing military attire and holding globus cruciger. Large M
between AINININIO (double or overstruck) and I; above,
cross; below, A; beneath exerguaJ line. CO(N). UnpUblished
except fo r Berlc 752A (plate coin). EF, dark green-brown
patina. (3000)
This coin is of regnal year J and solves the problem of
what happ~1I€d to y~ar J as only year 2 and later were
recorded previously . This coin is reminisc~nJ of his
father's, ConstafllilUl lV, first issue and it is not only of
the first year bUI a totally djfferent type than the iDler
iuues!

NICEPHORUS BASILACIUS

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J USTUNlandJUST~I
527
ANI10CH
11 . Follis. (14.04 gms.) (DN DN) IVSTINVS ET IVSTINlANVS
pp Ava (clockwise beginning at lOp) Facing busts of
Justin and Justinian, draped and cuirassed, both nimbate;
between the m above, cross. Large M between two stars;
above, cross; below, A; beneath cllcrgua' line, ANTI(X).
DOC. 14, Mm . to, SB. 130, Berk 118 (less than 25
recorded), Good VF, dark brown palina with touches of
green, extremely rare. (2000)
Th is is probably the only known tau jor this type and
denomination where the laces a/the emperors aFf: visible.
Usurper in 1bessalonica
1078
THESSALONICA
335. Follis. (4.8 1 gms.). Bust of Christ facin g, wearing nimbus
crudge r, pallium and colobium, right hand ra ised in
blessing, left holds scro ll ; to lefl, IC; to right, X(C).
Jewelled patriarchal cross on two steps, each ann ends in 3
pellets. X at lo wer intersection; in left fie ld, CIN; to right;
BIB. DOC. 2b (Nicephorus Bryennius), BN . 1-2, SB. 1890,
Berk 963 (possibly only 3 recorded). Near EF, brown patina.
tract5 or overstriking, extremely rare. (2000)
This is lilt! Berk. plaie coin.

Please write for a catalog

if you haven't received one.
- Harlan J. Berk, Ltd
PNG 178
31 North Clark Street, Chicago, Illinois 60602
ANA -lM 762 (312)609-0017 FAX (312) 609-1309