Classical Numismatic Group, LLC
Electronic Auction 539 31 May 2023
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SELEUCIS and PIERIA, Antioch. Mark Antony & Cleopatra VII of Egypt. 36 BC. AR Tetradrachm (26mm, 12h). Struck circa 36-34 BC. Diademed bust of Cleopatra right, wearing earring, necklace, and embroidered dress / Bare head of Antony right. McAlee 174; Prieur 27; RPC I 4094; HGC 9, 1361. In NGC encapsulation 6327421-006, graded F, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 3/5.
Ex Historical Scholar Collection (Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 350, 6 May 2015), lot 386.
These remarkable silver tetradrachms were probably struck at Antioch during the Parthian / Armenian campaign of 36-34 BC to honor perhaps the most famous "power couple" of all time. The attribution to Antioch remains uncertain and other mint sites in the Levant have been proposed; it is also possible they were struck at a mint moving with the army. The talented die engraver has taken particular care to give Cleopatra a powerful, almost masculine profile to complement Antony's pugnacious portrait. Ancient historians note that Cleopatra was not incomparably beautiful (although none suggest she was anything less than pleasing to gaze upon), but her remarkable mind, her musical voice, and the vast wealth of her kingdom made her irresistible to two of the most powerful men of the age: Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. The titles display Cleopatra's dominance in the relationship, depicting her on the obverse and touting her as "Queen Cleopatra, new (or "young") goddess," while Antony remains only a mortal "victorious general and Triumvir."
Ex Historical Scholar Collection (Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 350, 6 May 2015), lot 386.
These remarkable silver tetradrachms were probably struck at Antioch during the Parthian / Armenian campaign of 36-34 BC to honor perhaps the most famous "power couple" of all time. The attribution to Antioch remains uncertain and other mint sites in the Levant have been proposed; it is also possible they were struck at a mint moving with the army. The talented die engraver has taken particular care to give Cleopatra a powerful, almost masculine profile to complement Antony's pugnacious portrait. Ancient historians note that Cleopatra was not incomparably beautiful (although none suggest she was anything less than pleasing to gaze upon), but her remarkable mind, her musical voice, and the vast wealth of her kingdom made her irresistible to two of the most powerful men of the age: Julius Caesar and Mark Antony. The titles display Cleopatra's dominance in the relationship, depicting her on the obverse and touting her as "Queen Cleopatra, new (or "young") goddess," while Antony remains only a mortal "victorious general and Triumvir."