Numismatica Ars Classica
Auction 138 18-19 May 2023
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Crete, Cnossus.
Stater circa 440, AR 12.06 g. The Minotaur in a kneeling-running stance l., head facing. Rev. The Labyrinth, in the form of a swastika, at centre, five pellets in a floral pattern and in the corners, four sunken squares. Jameson 1317 (this coin). Svoronos 3 and pl. IV, 24. Le Rider pl. XXIV, 26 (this coin illustrated).
Very rare and in unusual condition for this important and fascinating issue, undoubtedly
one of the finest specimens in private hands. Old cabinet tone, traces of overstriking
on obverse, otherwise about extremely fine
Ex Hirsch sale XIII, 1905, Rhousopoulos, 2919. From the Jameson collection and a Distinguished Swiss Collection.
The types of this early silver stater of Cnossus depict one of the most famous stories in the Greek mythological repertoire. On the obverse the Minotaur appears in a delightful archaic kneeling-running pose while the reverse depicts the labyrinth in which he was imprisoned. According to Greek tradition, Cnossus was the capital of a great Aegean naval empire ruled by the Cretan king Minos. He was known to be a great lawgiver, who obtained laws directly from Zeus, but he was also cruel and selfish. Although he was commanded to sacrifice the most beautiful bull of his herds to Poseidon every year, on one occasion he kept the best bull for himself and instead sacrificed an inferior animal. Poseidon discovered his duplicity and placed a terrible curse on him: his wife, the queen Pasiphae, became consumed with an unnatural passion for the bull, which she satisfied with the assistance of the mechanical skills of Daedalus. The result of this union was the Minotaur (literally, "the bull of Minos") a child that had a human form but the head and horns of a bull. Unable to kill the monstrous creature, which also had the problem of anger management as well as a taste for blood, Minos ordered the Minotaur to be imprisoned at the centre of an extremely complex maze, known as the Labyrinth. This was designed by Daedalus so that the Minotaur would be unable to escape and run amok on Crete, but human victims, who would also become lost in the maze, could be sent in to serve as its food. Following a successful war against Athens, Minos ordered the Athenians to provide tribute in the form of seven youths and seven maidens who could be fed to the Minotaur. Among the youths was the hero Theseus who swore to finally put an end to the grisly tribute. This he did with the help of Minos' daughter Ariadne, who fell in love with Theseus and provided him with a ball of thread to unwind as he traversed the labyrinth. By winding it up again he would be able to retrace his steps and emerge from the maze. Armed with a sword and this means of return, Theseus killed the Minotaur at the heart of the Labyrinth-indicated by the rosette in the centre of the reverse-and ended all need for the human tribute to Minos. Nevertheless, Pasiphae mourned for the loss of her monstrous son and in rage the Cretan king punished Daedalus by ordering the imprisonment of the great inventor along with his son Icarus in the Labyrinth. The maze was clearly not as perfect as Daedalus had suggested when he had originally designed it. While this sentence would have spelled doom for lesser men, Daedalus conceived a plan of escape. Since the Labyrinth was open to the sky, he and his son collected feathers from birds and used wax to construct their own pairs of wings in order to fly out of the maze. Like all the projects of Daedalus, the plan was a brilliant success. Father and son escaped from the Labyrinth and found themselves flying on their way to safety over the Aegean Sea. Unfortunately, success turned to bitter tragedy when Icarus flew too high in the sky and the heat of the sun melted his wings. As Daedalus watched in horror, his only son fell into the sea and drowned. The Greek myths of Minos, the Minotaur, and the Labyrinth, which may dimly recall elements of the Bronze Age Cretan culture, became the claim to fame for Cnossus in the Iron Age and therefore appear frequently and prominently on the coins of the city even as late as the Roman period.
Stater circa 440, AR 12.06 g. The Minotaur in a kneeling-running stance l., head facing. Rev. The Labyrinth, in the form of a swastika, at centre, five pellets in a floral pattern and in the corners, four sunken squares. Jameson 1317 (this coin). Svoronos 3 and pl. IV, 24. Le Rider pl. XXIV, 26 (this coin illustrated).
Very rare and in unusual condition for this important and fascinating issue, undoubtedly
one of the finest specimens in private hands. Old cabinet tone, traces of overstriking
on obverse, otherwise about extremely fine
Ex Hirsch sale XIII, 1905, Rhousopoulos, 2919. From the Jameson collection and a Distinguished Swiss Collection.
The types of this early silver stater of Cnossus depict one of the most famous stories in the Greek mythological repertoire. On the obverse the Minotaur appears in a delightful archaic kneeling-running pose while the reverse depicts the labyrinth in which he was imprisoned. According to Greek tradition, Cnossus was the capital of a great Aegean naval empire ruled by the Cretan king Minos. He was known to be a great lawgiver, who obtained laws directly from Zeus, but he was also cruel and selfish. Although he was commanded to sacrifice the most beautiful bull of his herds to Poseidon every year, on one occasion he kept the best bull for himself and instead sacrificed an inferior animal. Poseidon discovered his duplicity and placed a terrible curse on him: his wife, the queen Pasiphae, became consumed with an unnatural passion for the bull, which she satisfied with the assistance of the mechanical skills of Daedalus. The result of this union was the Minotaur (literally, "the bull of Minos") a child that had a human form but the head and horns of a bull. Unable to kill the monstrous creature, which also had the problem of anger management as well as a taste for blood, Minos ordered the Minotaur to be imprisoned at the centre of an extremely complex maze, known as the Labyrinth. This was designed by Daedalus so that the Minotaur would be unable to escape and run amok on Crete, but human victims, who would also become lost in the maze, could be sent in to serve as its food. Following a successful war against Athens, Minos ordered the Athenians to provide tribute in the form of seven youths and seven maidens who could be fed to the Minotaur. Among the youths was the hero Theseus who swore to finally put an end to the grisly tribute. This he did with the help of Minos' daughter Ariadne, who fell in love with Theseus and provided him with a ball of thread to unwind as he traversed the labyrinth. By winding it up again he would be able to retrace his steps and emerge from the maze. Armed with a sword and this means of return, Theseus killed the Minotaur at the heart of the Labyrinth-indicated by the rosette in the centre of the reverse-and ended all need for the human tribute to Minos. Nevertheless, Pasiphae mourned for the loss of her monstrous son and in rage the Cretan king punished Daedalus by ordering the imprisonment of the great inventor along with his son Icarus in the Labyrinth. The maze was clearly not as perfect as Daedalus had suggested when he had originally designed it. While this sentence would have spelled doom for lesser men, Daedalus conceived a plan of escape. Since the Labyrinth was open to the sky, he and his son collected feathers from birds and used wax to construct their own pairs of wings in order to fly out of the maze. Like all the projects of Daedalus, the plan was a brilliant success. Father and son escaped from the Labyrinth and found themselves flying on their way to safety over the Aegean Sea. Unfortunately, success turned to bitter tragedy when Icarus flew too high in the sky and the heat of the sun melted his wings. As Daedalus watched in horror, his only son fell into the sea and drowned. The Greek myths of Minos, the Minotaur, and the Labyrinth, which may dimly recall elements of the Bronze Age Cretan culture, became the claim to fame for Cnossus in the Iron Age and therefore appear frequently and prominently on the coins of the city even as late as the Roman period.