Watch List notes:

THRACE, Ainos. Circa 458/7-457/6 BC. AR Tetradrachm (23.5mm, 16.33 g, 10h). Head of Hermes right, wearing petasos with pelleted rim / Goat standing right; AINI above; to right, cult image of Hermes Perpheraios, wearing petasos, set on high-backed throne adorned with wreath and kerykeion, facing right; all within incuse square. May, Ainos 74d (A46/P56) = AMNG II 259.27 (this coin); HGC 3, 1266; BMC 3 (same rev. die); Boston MFA 770 = Warren 458 (same obv. die); Consul Weber 861 (same rev. die); Dewing 1269 (same dies); Hirsch 881 (same dies); Jameson 1047 (same rev. die); McClean 3820 (same dies); Seltman, Greek 8 (same obv. die). Beautiful old cabinet tone, old graze under tone on obverse. EF. Magnificent early Classical style.


From the B. G. Collection. Ex Numismatica Ars Classica 46 (2 April 2008), lot 243; Leu 77 (11 May 2000), lot 136; Gustav Philipsen Collection (J. Hirsch XXV, 29 November 1909), lot 109 (where it was purchased by A. Sambon).

In his review of May's corpus on Ainos, Charles Seltman (Classical Review 65 [1951], p. 225) suggested that this issue was struck circa 474 BC, earlier than May thought, which would place it among the earliest issues of the goat reverse series. If the earlier dating is correct, given the exceptional quality of the style, and the use of the cult image of Hermes Perpheraios, an important element of the city's mythology, it is possible that this issue served as the prototype for the long and distinguished goat series.