Caria. Kos. 285-258 BC. AR Tetradrachm (14.78g, 1h). Requier 37; Prospero 558. Lightly toned. Perfectly centered and struck. Insignificant corrosion on obverse. With a bold and elegant head of Herakles. One of the finest known. Choice extremely fine. From a private collection

This coin is one of the few Hellenistic tetradrachms of Kos that are not badly struck or corroded. Above the god's bow-case, the reverse shows a crab, the animal being an ally of him in Koan mythology - even though usually the crab is the ally of the Hydra - possibly for the simple reason that the island's name was derived from the Greek word for crab.