GREEK COINS
MESSENIA
Messene. Late 2nd - early 1st centuries BC. Hemidrachm (Silver, 15mm, 2.41 g 3). Laureate head of Zeus to right. Rev. ΜΕΣ within olive wreath with ties at the bottom. BCD Peloponnesos -. Grandjean Serie X, Emission α, D57/R79 (same dies). Extremely rare, one of five examples known, of which two, one in the ANS and one in Berlin, share these dies. Good very fine.
From a European collection, formed before 2005.
This is one of those startling coins that was missing from the BCD collection: two were found in Agrinion and there are two others.