Ira and Larry Goldberg Auctioneers
Auction 96 14-15 February 2017
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Cilicia, Issos. Silver Stater (10.62 g), ca. 385-380 BC. Obverse die signed by the artist Apatorios. IΣΣI, Apollo standing facing, head left, holding patera and placing hand on laurel tree behind; in upper left field, artist's signature: AΠATOPIOΣ. Reverse: Herakles standing facing, head right, resting hand on grounded club and holding bow and arrow, lion's skin draped over arm; in right field, ankh-like symbol. Brindley grp. 5b; Casabonne type 3; SNG BN -; cf. SNG Levante 173. Very Rare. Well struck and lightly toned. Extremely Fine. Estimate Value $1,500 - 2,000
From the Hanbery Collection; Purchased privately from NFA in 1989.
This coin is notable for the presence of an artist's signature on the obverse naming a certain Apatorios as the die engraver. While signed dies are far more frequently encountered in Greek Sicily than in Persian-ruled Cilicia, we can see why the engraver would have been proud of his work. The figures of both Apollo and Herakles are stately and reflect an artist very familiar with the proportional canon of Polykleitos. The detailed musculature of both figures, as well as the hair and leaves on Apollo's laurel branch, make it easy to imagine the Herakles and Apollo of the coin as representations of real cult images worshipped in the temples of Issos.
From the Hanbery Collection; Purchased privately from NFA in 1989.
This coin is notable for the presence of an artist's signature on the obverse naming a certain Apatorios as the die engraver. While signed dies are far more frequently encountered in Greek Sicily than in Persian-ruled Cilicia, we can see why the engraver would have been proud of his work. The figures of both Apollo and Herakles are stately and reflect an artist very familiar with the proportional canon of Polykleitos. The detailed musculature of both figures, as well as the hair and leaves on Apollo's laurel branch, make it easy to imagine the Herakles and Apollo of the coin as representations of real cult images worshipped in the temples of Issos.