Watch List notes:

GREEK COINS
Mysia, Cyzicus

Stater circa 550-475, El 15.99 g. Head of Athena l., wearing crested Attic helmet; beneath, tunny-fish l. Rev. Quadripartite incuse square. Traité pl. VI, 28. Greenwell 25 (this coin). von Fritze 67 and pl. 2, 20 (this coin illustrated). Jameson 2171 (this coin). Weber 4791 (this coin). Kraay-Hirmer 701 (this obverse die). Kunstfreund 5 (this coin).
Rare and undoubtedly one of the finest electrum staters of Cyzicus in existence.
A masterpiece of numismatic Archaic portraiture and the work of a very
skilled master engraver, perfectly struck in high relief.
Virtually as struck and almost Fdc


Ex Leu-M&M sale 28 May 1974, Kunstfreund (Charles Gillet), 5. From the Jameson, Weber and Charles Gillet collections.
The ancient city of Cyzicus, known to numismatists primarily for its extensive and varied early issues in electrum, was located along the banks of the river Aisepos on the southwestern shore of the Propontis. It was purportedly the first of many cities founded by colonists from Miletos, chosen due to its defensible site and two fine harbors from which it derived its great wealth, both from the abundant stock of tunny within their waters and from the extensive trade networks between the Euxine and Aegean Seas. The tunny was the city's civic badge and features on all of its coinage before the advent of Rome.
In addition to the tunny, the electrum coinage of Cyzicus struck over the course of the sixth and fifth centuries B.C. presents us with a great variety of designs. There are a few that seemingly derive from other coin types or possibly from historical events, but for the majority no underlying reason is evident. For instance, although Athena as presented here is magnificently centered and beautifully executed with her high-crested Attic helmet, there was no cult of significance to the goddess at Cyzicus and festivals in her honor at the city are not mentioned by ancient authors. Most cities in ancient times chose to commemorate on their coinage a specific historical event or either some mythological or religious characteristic of the city. Why Cyzicus did not, at least as can be determined by the majority of her types during this period, has led to an insightful observation by Colin Kraay (cf. ACGC p. 264), where he suggests that perhaps Cyzicus derived its coin types from designs on Greek vases and other works of art that passed through its ports during the course of trade between the Aegean and Euxine Seas.