The New York Sale
Auction 54 11 Jan 2022
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Cleopatra and Mark Antony, Silver Tetradrachm (15.47 g). Mint of Antioch, ca. 36 B.C., BACI?ICCA K?EO?ATPA TEA NE?[TEPA], diademed and draped bust of Cleopatra right. Reverse: ANT?NIOC AYTOKPAT?P TPITON TPI?N AN?P?[N], bare head of Mark Antony right. McAlee 174; Prieur 27; RPC I 4094; BMC 53. Toned, with a trace of blue-green iridescence on Mark Antony's portrait. NGC graded Extremely Fine, Strike: 4/5, Surface: 3/5. Estimated Value $50,000 - UP
One of the most famous and powerful women in history, Cleopatra will forever be associated with Mark Antony - the events of their lives, and deaths, having become the stuff of literature, film and legend. Each driven by the benefits of the other's status, Antony and Cleopatra embarked on a relationship that saw Antony's military aspirations funded by the wealth of Cleopatra's Ptolemaic Egypt. In return Cleopatra gained the restoration of former Ptolemaic territories in Turkey, Cyprus and the near east, territories which were Antony's to give, and perhaps aspired to even greater power as an empress in Rome itself. Despite Antony and Cleopatra's relationship, and even the birth of their children, Antony married Octavia - a political union to sustain the triumvirate and secure his own power in the east. The marriage wasn't enough though and as the triumvirate faltered accusations were thrown at Antony that he supported the imposition of an eastern Queen on the republic. While he gained financial backing, he lost essential political support. The coin predates the fall of the triumvirate and was struck when Antony, though already married, was reunited with Cleopatra, securing funds for a campaign in Parthia and repaying her again with territory. It may even be an example of the very coinage struck to pay for the campaign. Her title thea neotera (the new goddess) may serve to associate her with her ancestor Cleopatra Thea, a powerful Seleucid monarch, and to justify the grants of territories awarded to her in the east. Alternatively, it may represent the tradition of identifying Ptolemaic queens with Isis-Aphrodite. Cleopatra was an independent and absolute monarch in her own right. Even though their lives and deaths were inextricably linked, while Mark Antony committed suicide because he thought Cleopatra was already dead, Cleopatra did so to deny the victorious Octavian the satisfaction of parading her in triumph. Referencing die-studies, Roman Provincial Coinage notes that, beyond doubt, Cleopatra's portrait is the obverse of this coin (RPC I 4094 note).
One of the most famous and powerful women in history, Cleopatra will forever be associated with Mark Antony - the events of their lives, and deaths, having become the stuff of literature, film and legend. Each driven by the benefits of the other's status, Antony and Cleopatra embarked on a relationship that saw Antony's military aspirations funded by the wealth of Cleopatra's Ptolemaic Egypt. In return Cleopatra gained the restoration of former Ptolemaic territories in Turkey, Cyprus and the near east, territories which were Antony's to give, and perhaps aspired to even greater power as an empress in Rome itself. Despite Antony and Cleopatra's relationship, and even the birth of their children, Antony married Octavia - a political union to sustain the triumvirate and secure his own power in the east. The marriage wasn't enough though and as the triumvirate faltered accusations were thrown at Antony that he supported the imposition of an eastern Queen on the republic. While he gained financial backing, he lost essential political support. The coin predates the fall of the triumvirate and was struck when Antony, though already married, was reunited with Cleopatra, securing funds for a campaign in Parthia and repaying her again with territory. It may even be an example of the very coinage struck to pay for the campaign. Her title thea neotera (the new goddess) may serve to associate her with her ancestor Cleopatra Thea, a powerful Seleucid monarch, and to justify the grants of territories awarded to her in the east. Alternatively, it may represent the tradition of identifying Ptolemaic queens with Isis-Aphrodite. Cleopatra was an independent and absolute monarch in her own right. Even though their lives and deaths were inextricably linked, while Mark Antony committed suicide because he thought Cleopatra was already dead, Cleopatra did so to deny the victorious Octavian the satisfaction of parading her in triumph. Referencing die-studies, Roman Provincial Coinage notes that, beyond doubt, Cleopatra's portrait is the obverse of this coin (RPC I 4094 note).