Numismatica Ars Classica
Auction 120 6-7 Oct 2020
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Corinthia, Corinth
Stater circa 555-550, AR 8.52 g. Pegasus flying l.; below, [koppa]. Rev. Mail sail pattern incuse. Ravel 4 (this coin illustrated). SNG Lockett 2018 (this coin illustrated). Calciati, Pegasi 2 (this obverse die). BCD Korinth –.
Extremely rare, not only one of the earliest issues of Corinth but one of the first
Greek silver coins to be minted. An issue of tremendous importance and
fascination. Light old cabinet tone, minor traces of double striking
on obverse and porosity on reverse, otherwise very fine
Ex Glendinings sale 27th May 1959, Lockett, 1771. From the Anderson collection.
One of the earliest coinages of the Greeks was produced in Corinth, a city at the juncture of the mainland and the Peloponnesus. It was an ideal staging point for trade throughout Greece, and to the west, where so many Greeks had established colonies in Italy and Sicily. Between Corinth and the Greek cities in Magna Graecia lie the westernmost regions of the Greek mainland – Illyria, Epirus, Acarnania, and the island of Corcyra – all locations where Corinthian colonies would later issue their own versions of the famous Corinthian 'colts'.
It is now generally believed that the three earliest coinages in Greece were those of Aegina, Corinth and Athens, all of which were introduced soon after the Lydian King Croesus (c. 560-546 B.C.) had abandoned electrum in favour of a bi- metallic coinage. This is a significant departure from the thoughts of early scholars, who tended to date the first Corinthian staters perhaps a century earlier than current evidence supports. Barclay Head, for example, dated the present type to 657- 625 B.C., during the time of Cypselus.
It is now supposed that the Aegina turtles were the first Greek coins, commencing in about 555/50 B.C. Following in quick succession were the colts of Corinth, perhaps as early as circa 555 B.C., but perhaps closer to circa 550 B.C., and the Wappenmünzen ('heraldic coins') of Athens, starting in about 545 B.C. Dates as precise as these, however, must be taken with a grain of salt, as they are ever subject to revision upon the discovery of new evidence.
If we assume that the date proposed by Head is correct, it was issued not long after the great political revolution in the city that saw the overthrow of the Kypselid tyranny and the establishment of an oligarchic government. In circa 657, the Corinthian general Kypselos overthrew the dominating Bakchiad family at Corinth and established himself as tyrant in the city. Corinth prospered under his rule through his policy of establishing dependent colonies at Ambrakia, Anaktorion, and Leukas. However, his son Periander turned out to have the character of the stereotypical evil tyrant. Numerous stories, which may or may not be true, chronicle his crimes, including the castration of 300 boys from Korkyra in revenge for the murder of his son as well as an unnatural encounter with his wife that he had had killed! Outraged by this kind of behavior, shortly after the tyranny was inherited by Perianders nephew in c. 587 BC, the Corinthians staged a coup, possibly with Spartan assistance, and ended the tyranny in their city. The present coin was struck only a few decades after this tumultuous event, when the Corinthian oligarchy had fully established its power. Pegasus, the mythical winged horse, was closely associated with Corinth through the local hero Bellerophon. With the aid of Athena, he was able to tame the wild horse when it alighted on the Akrokorinth to drink from the spring of Pierene. Bellerophon then flew on the back of Pegasus to Lycia, where he slew the monstrous Chimaira-a fire-breathing creature composed of the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a snake. Unfortunately, this tremendous feat puffed Bellerophon up with pride and he conceived the idea of flying to the top of Mount Olympos, after all, he felt himself to be an equal to the gods. Taking offense at this, Zeus sent a gadfly to bite Pegasus as he was carrying Bellerophon, causing the winged horse to throw his rider off in mid-flight. Pegasus was subsequently stabled with the other steeds of Zeus and given the honour of carrying the gods thunderbolts. Through Bellerophon and the spring of Pierene, Pegasus became the primary civic badge of Corinth and the standard type for its silver coinage beginning in the sixth century BC. Corinthian coinage and the Corinthian standard (c. 8.6g to a stater of three drachms) became the preferred means of exchange in much of the Peloponnesos and northwestern Greece. The dissemination of the Pegasus type was also furthered by its common use by the Corinthian colonies established in Akarnanaia, on Corcyra, and in Illyria. Indeed, the type became so well known that the Corinthian stater earned the nickname "colt" in the same way that the widely-circulating Athenian tetradrachm was known simply as an "owl."
The primitive 'mill sail' punch on the reverse of this coin marks it as being among the very earliest of Corinthian staters. Soon it was replaced with a more refined incuse punch bearing a swastika-like pattern. The extreme rarity of this first type is underscored by its absence from most of the major private collections. None existed, for example, in BCD, a collection in which one might have expected to see multiple examples.
Stater circa 555-550, AR 8.52 g. Pegasus flying l.; below, [koppa]. Rev. Mail sail pattern incuse. Ravel 4 (this coin illustrated). SNG Lockett 2018 (this coin illustrated). Calciati, Pegasi 2 (this obverse die). BCD Korinth –.
Extremely rare, not only one of the earliest issues of Corinth but one of the first
Greek silver coins to be minted. An issue of tremendous importance and
fascination. Light old cabinet tone, minor traces of double striking
on obverse and porosity on reverse, otherwise very fine
Ex Glendinings sale 27th May 1959, Lockett, 1771. From the Anderson collection.
One of the earliest coinages of the Greeks was produced in Corinth, a city at the juncture of the mainland and the Peloponnesus. It was an ideal staging point for trade throughout Greece, and to the west, where so many Greeks had established colonies in Italy and Sicily. Between Corinth and the Greek cities in Magna Graecia lie the westernmost regions of the Greek mainland – Illyria, Epirus, Acarnania, and the island of Corcyra – all locations where Corinthian colonies would later issue their own versions of the famous Corinthian 'colts'.
It is now generally believed that the three earliest coinages in Greece were those of Aegina, Corinth and Athens, all of which were introduced soon after the Lydian King Croesus (c. 560-546 B.C.) had abandoned electrum in favour of a bi- metallic coinage. This is a significant departure from the thoughts of early scholars, who tended to date the first Corinthian staters perhaps a century earlier than current evidence supports. Barclay Head, for example, dated the present type to 657- 625 B.C., during the time of Cypselus.
It is now supposed that the Aegina turtles were the first Greek coins, commencing in about 555/50 B.C. Following in quick succession were the colts of Corinth, perhaps as early as circa 555 B.C., but perhaps closer to circa 550 B.C., and the Wappenmünzen ('heraldic coins') of Athens, starting in about 545 B.C. Dates as precise as these, however, must be taken with a grain of salt, as they are ever subject to revision upon the discovery of new evidence.
If we assume that the date proposed by Head is correct, it was issued not long after the great political revolution in the city that saw the overthrow of the Kypselid tyranny and the establishment of an oligarchic government. In circa 657, the Corinthian general Kypselos overthrew the dominating Bakchiad family at Corinth and established himself as tyrant in the city. Corinth prospered under his rule through his policy of establishing dependent colonies at Ambrakia, Anaktorion, and Leukas. However, his son Periander turned out to have the character of the stereotypical evil tyrant. Numerous stories, which may or may not be true, chronicle his crimes, including the castration of 300 boys from Korkyra in revenge for the murder of his son as well as an unnatural encounter with his wife that he had had killed! Outraged by this kind of behavior, shortly after the tyranny was inherited by Perianders nephew in c. 587 BC, the Corinthians staged a coup, possibly with Spartan assistance, and ended the tyranny in their city. The present coin was struck only a few decades after this tumultuous event, when the Corinthian oligarchy had fully established its power. Pegasus, the mythical winged horse, was closely associated with Corinth through the local hero Bellerophon. With the aid of Athena, he was able to tame the wild horse when it alighted on the Akrokorinth to drink from the spring of Pierene. Bellerophon then flew on the back of Pegasus to Lycia, where he slew the monstrous Chimaira-a fire-breathing creature composed of the head of a lion, the body of a goat, and the tail of a snake. Unfortunately, this tremendous feat puffed Bellerophon up with pride and he conceived the idea of flying to the top of Mount Olympos, after all, he felt himself to be an equal to the gods. Taking offense at this, Zeus sent a gadfly to bite Pegasus as he was carrying Bellerophon, causing the winged horse to throw his rider off in mid-flight. Pegasus was subsequently stabled with the other steeds of Zeus and given the honour of carrying the gods thunderbolts. Through Bellerophon and the spring of Pierene, Pegasus became the primary civic badge of Corinth and the standard type for its silver coinage beginning in the sixth century BC. Corinthian coinage and the Corinthian standard (c. 8.6g to a stater of three drachms) became the preferred means of exchange in much of the Peloponnesos and northwestern Greece. The dissemination of the Pegasus type was also furthered by its common use by the Corinthian colonies established in Akarnanaia, on Corcyra, and in Illyria. Indeed, the type became so well known that the Corinthian stater earned the nickname "colt" in the same way that the widely-circulating Athenian tetradrachm was known simply as an "owl."
The primitive 'mill sail' punch on the reverse of this coin marks it as being among the very earliest of Corinthian staters. Soon it was replaced with a more refined incuse punch bearing a swastika-like pattern. The extreme rarity of this first type is underscored by its absence from most of the major private collections. None existed, for example, in BCD, a collection in which one might have expected to see multiple examples.