Bertolami Fine Art
Auction 87 14-15 Dec 2020
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Uncertain Germanic Tribe, Pseudo-Imperial Quinarius, mid 3rd - early 4th centuries; AV (g 3,30; mm 19 x 15; h 6); Bare imperial head l.; around, pseudo-legend, Rv. Bear, upright, standing l., presenting basket (?) to male figure seated r., leaning his r. hand on ground and extending his l. toward the bear; around and in ex., pseudo-legend. Cfr. Leu Numismatik AG, 4, 25 May 2019, lot 823.
Of the highest rarity. With the original suspension loop attached, extremely fine.
Citing from Leu Numismatik AG: "What it represents is unclear: the reverse, which shows a bear presenting an uncertain object (a basket?) to a sitting male figure, is without parallels in ancient coinage and thus in all likelihood a genuinely German motive. Does it portray a local tale, in which a bear comes to the rescue of a human, or is it the artist's rendering of the epiphany of a German god in the form of a bear, much like Zeus used to appear in the guise of various animals in Greek mythology? We shall, unfortunately, never know, but it certainly is an astonishing and wonderful coin and of the greatest historical interest."
Of the highest rarity. With the original suspension loop attached, extremely fine.
Citing from Leu Numismatik AG: "What it represents is unclear: the reverse, which shows a bear presenting an uncertain object (a basket?) to a sitting male figure, is without parallels in ancient coinage and thus in all likelihood a genuinely German motive. Does it portray a local tale, in which a bear comes to the rescue of a human, or is it the artist's rendering of the epiphany of a German god in the form of a bear, much like Zeus used to appear in the guise of various animals in Greek mythology? We shall, unfortunately, never know, but it certainly is an astonishing and wonderful coin and of the greatest historical interest."