Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XIV 21 Sep 2017
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Attica, Athens AR Tetradrachm. Circa 490-482 BC. Archaic head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet decorated with chevron and dot pattern / AΘE, owl standing three-quarters right, head facing, olive sprig behind; all within incuse square. Cf. Seltman pl. XIII 'Civic Mint', particularly reverses P.235-P236 for similar style owl; cf. Svoronos pl. 5-7. 17.09g, 26mm, 6h.
Very Fine; attractive old tone. Unusual and highly distinctive early style. Very Rare.
From a private German collection.
The famous Athenian 'owl' tetradrachm, unquestionably one of the most influential coins of all time, was introduced by the tyrant Hippias sometime between c.525 and c.510 BC, with van Alfen offering a date of about 515 as the most current view. The basic design would remain unchanged for nearly five hundred years, be extensively copied throughout the Mediterranean, and is today, as it was then, emblematic of Greek culture.
The quality of the engraving on the early owl tetradrachms varies greatly, from the sublime to some which are very crude indeed. This disparity led Seltman to propose that those tetradrachms he considered to be of fine style were issues from a 'civic' mint in Athens, while those exhibiting little talent on the part of the engravers emanated from an 'imperial' mint in the Attic or Thracian hinterlands.
Very Fine; attractive old tone. Unusual and highly distinctive early style. Very Rare.
From a private German collection.
The famous Athenian 'owl' tetradrachm, unquestionably one of the most influential coins of all time, was introduced by the tyrant Hippias sometime between c.525 and c.510 BC, with van Alfen offering a date of about 515 as the most current view. The basic design would remain unchanged for nearly five hundred years, be extensively copied throughout the Mediterranean, and is today, as it was then, emblematic of Greek culture.
The quality of the engraving on the early owl tetradrachms varies greatly, from the sublime to some which are very crude indeed. This disparity led Seltman to propose that those tetradrachms he considered to be of fine style were issues from a 'civic' mint in Athens, while those exhibiting little talent on the part of the engravers emanated from an 'imperial' mint in the Attic or Thracian hinterlands.