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ANA Signature Sale 3094 19-20 Aug 2021
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Ancients
SARONIC ISLANDS. Aegina. Ca. 480-457 BC. AR stater (20mm, 12.24 gm). NGC Choice VF★ 5/5 - 3/5, punch mark. Sea turtle, viewed from above, head turned sideways, with trefoil collar and row of five dots down center of shell / Large skew pattern incuse with five sunken compartments. HGC 6, 435. Meadows Group IIIa. Milbank pl. 1, 13. SNG Lockett 1970. Tremendous centering with all detail on flan. Bright surfaces accented by deep toning, bringing the turtle to life.
The city of Aegina, located on the Saronic Gulf island of the same name, appears to have been the first European city to mint coins of any type, starting circa 550 BC. From earliest times, the maritime city placed a sea turtle on the obverse of its coins, with a simple abstract incuse punch on the reverse. These "turtles" soon circulated widely and impressed neighboring Athens enough that it began striking its own silver coins a few decades later. The sea turtle on Aeginetan coins underwent a slow evolution as the decades passed, with a brief divergence in the mid-sixth century of depicting a land tortoise with a segmented shell. This specimen represents the final form of the sea turtle circa 480-457 BC, after the Aeginetan navy distinguished itself at the Battle of Salamis. After about 450 BC the obverse type switched permanently to a land tortoise, perhaps reflecting the eclipse of Aegina's naval power by nearby Athens.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/greek/ancients-saronic-islands-aegina-ca-480-457-bc-ar-stater-20mm-1224-gm-ngc-choice-vfand-9733-5-5-3-5-punch/a/3094-34090.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 2000-3000 USD
SARONIC ISLANDS. Aegina. Ca. 480-457 BC. AR stater (20mm, 12.24 gm). NGC Choice VF★ 5/5 - 3/5, punch mark. Sea turtle, viewed from above, head turned sideways, with trefoil collar and row of five dots down center of shell / Large skew pattern incuse with five sunken compartments. HGC 6, 435. Meadows Group IIIa. Milbank pl. 1, 13. SNG Lockett 1970. Tremendous centering with all detail on flan. Bright surfaces accented by deep toning, bringing the turtle to life.
The city of Aegina, located on the Saronic Gulf island of the same name, appears to have been the first European city to mint coins of any type, starting circa 550 BC. From earliest times, the maritime city placed a sea turtle on the obverse of its coins, with a simple abstract incuse punch on the reverse. These "turtles" soon circulated widely and impressed neighboring Athens enough that it began striking its own silver coins a few decades later. The sea turtle on Aeginetan coins underwent a slow evolution as the decades passed, with a brief divergence in the mid-sixth century of depicting a land tortoise with a segmented shell. This specimen represents the final form of the sea turtle circa 480-457 BC, after the Aeginetan navy distinguished itself at the Battle of Salamis. After about 450 BC the obverse type switched permanently to a land tortoise, perhaps reflecting the eclipse of Aegina's naval power by nearby Athens.
https://coins.ha.com/itm/ancients/greek/ancients-saronic-islands-aegina-ca-480-457-bc-ar-stater-20mm-1224-gm-ngc-choice-vfand-9733-5-5-3-5-punch/a/3094-34090.s?type=CoinArchives3094
HID02906262019
© 2020 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
Estimate: 2000-3000 USD