Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XVII 28 Mar 2019
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
Mysia, Kyzikos EL Stater. Circa 400-330 BC. Apollo reclining half-facing on a griffin flying to right, wearing laurel wreath and chiton draped from waist, holding in right hand; tunny fish below to right / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze 151; Greenwell 20; SNG France -; Boston MFA 1545 = Warren 1438; Prinkipo 23, pl. I, 23. 15.94g, 23mm.
Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; one of only three examples in CoinArchives, and arguably the finest and most complete. A wonderful composition of outstanding beauty.
From the inventory of a UK dealer.
This is one of the most intricate of all scenes depicted on the staters of Kyzikos and is thought to represent Hyperborean Apollo. The land of Hyperborea is commented upon by many ancient authors as a place of eternal sun located beyond the home of the North Wind. The precise location cannot be narrowed down to more than being north of Greece. The range of locations given could mean the area was anywhere between Britain and Dacia or perhaps further north. According to ancient myth, Hyperborea was a land rich in gold and was guarded by griffins. As Herodotus says "but in the north of Europe there is by far the most gold...it is said that one-eyed men called Arimaspians steal it from griffins...The most outlying lands, though, as they enclose and wholly surround all the rest of the world, are likely to have those things which we think the finest and the rarest." (Histories, 3.116).
Apollo is frequently associated with Hyperborea in ancient literature and likewise with griffins as his chariot is sometimes portrayed as being pulled by a griffin. This remarkably detailed coin depicts a type also seen on an Attic kylix in Vienna (Kunsthistorisches Museum 202). The differences between these two representations of the same image highlight the skill of the die-engraver at Kyzikos since he is able to masterfully render the physicality of Apollo resting against the griffin with naturalism in contrast to the kylix which has the impression of weightlessness. Further, the attention to detail achieved on such a small coin is remarkable as we are able to see the feathers of the griffin's wings, the musculature on Apollo's torso, and the distinctness of the features of god and beast.
Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; one of only three examples in CoinArchives, and arguably the finest and most complete. A wonderful composition of outstanding beauty.
From the inventory of a UK dealer.
This is one of the most intricate of all scenes depicted on the staters of Kyzikos and is thought to represent Hyperborean Apollo. The land of Hyperborea is commented upon by many ancient authors as a place of eternal sun located beyond the home of the North Wind. The precise location cannot be narrowed down to more than being north of Greece. The range of locations given could mean the area was anywhere between Britain and Dacia or perhaps further north. According to ancient myth, Hyperborea was a land rich in gold and was guarded by griffins. As Herodotus says "but in the north of Europe there is by far the most gold...it is said that one-eyed men called Arimaspians steal it from griffins...The most outlying lands, though, as they enclose and wholly surround all the rest of the world, are likely to have those things which we think the finest and the rarest." (Histories, 3.116).
Apollo is frequently associated with Hyperborea in ancient literature and likewise with griffins as his chariot is sometimes portrayed as being pulled by a griffin. This remarkably detailed coin depicts a type also seen on an Attic kylix in Vienna (Kunsthistorisches Museum 202). The differences between these two representations of the same image highlight the skill of the die-engraver at Kyzikos since he is able to masterfully render the physicality of Apollo resting against the griffin with naturalism in contrast to the kylix which has the impression of weightlessness. Further, the attention to detail achieved on such a small coin is remarkable as we are able to see the feathers of the griffin's wings, the musculature on Apollo's torso, and the distinctness of the features of god and beast.