Nomos AG
Auction 26 21 May 2023
View prices realized
► Sale information
Find similar lots
CYCLADES, Uncertain, Keos (?). Karthaia (?). Circa 540-520/515 BC. Obol (Silver, 10 mm, 0.97 g), struck on the Aeginetic standard. Krater with two handles. Rev. Quadripartite incuse square, with two squares divided diagonally. Apparently unpublished, save for two examples from auctions, both attributed to Andros. Papageorgiadou-Banis -. Sheedy -. But for the other examples, both struck from the same dies as this piece and attributed to Andros, but both identifying the vessel as an amphora, see Naville I, Pozzi, 1921, 2015 and G. Hirsch Nachf. 272, 2011, 287. Extremely rare, an attractive coin, boldly struck and toned. Minor uncleaned deposits, otherwise, extremely fine.
From the "Collection sans Pareille" of Ancient Greek Fractions, probably acquired in the 1980s.
It should be noted that Sheedy, pp. 24 ff., has convincingly disproved the old attribution, tentatively followed by the Hirsch cataloguer, of coins with amphorae to Andros (in any case, the vessel on this coin is a krater not an amphora).
This coin's ticket describes it as being from Keos ("Boutin Karthaia") and having a hydria on its obverse. In fact, the vessel is actually a wide-mouthed volute krater (a wine mixing bowl), but the attribution to the city of Karthaia is completely reasonable (could it be that the attribution was actually made by the late Serge Boutin, 1910-1998, the well-known Parisian coin dealer whose own great collection of coins of the Cyclades was sold in M&M 76 in 1991?). What is particularly suggestive is the incuse square on the reverse, which is basically the same as that used for the first two series of Karthaian silver.
From the "Collection sans Pareille" of Ancient Greek Fractions, probably acquired in the 1980s.
It should be noted that Sheedy, pp. 24 ff., has convincingly disproved the old attribution, tentatively followed by the Hirsch cataloguer, of coins with amphorae to Andros (in any case, the vessel on this coin is a krater not an amphora).
This coin's ticket describes it as being from Keos ("Boutin Karthaia") and having a hydria on its obverse. In fact, the vessel is actually a wide-mouthed volute krater (a wine mixing bowl), but the attribution to the city of Karthaia is completely reasonable (could it be that the attribution was actually made by the late Serge Boutin, 1910-1998, the well-known Parisian coin dealer whose own great collection of coins of the Cyclades was sold in M&M 76 in 1991?). What is particularly suggestive is the incuse square on the reverse, which is basically the same as that used for the first two series of Karthaian silver.