Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6

Date: 2025-01-22 16:00:00 (1 month from now)

Lots: 1402

Total starting: $ 322,887.00

In this auction, Numistats has matched 129 coins, providing AI-powered purchase recommendations and detailed analysis. View more.

Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5253
SAMARIA, “Middle Levantine” Series. Circa 375-333 BC. AR Quarter Obol(?) (5mm, 0.06 g, 6h). Lion(?) standing right / Forepart of horned creature right. Unpublished in the standard references. Toned. Good VF. Very rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5254
PHILISTIA (PALESTINE), Askalon. Mid 5th century-333 BC. AR Obol (10mm, 0.68 g, 2h). Female head right, with oriental hairstyle / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left; ’aleph nun (in Aramaic) to right; all within incuse square. Gitler & Tal III.11Oe (same rev. die). Find patina, some roughness, struck with worn reverse die. VF. Rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5255
PHILISTIA (PALESTINE), Uncertain mint. Circa 353-333 BC. AR Obol (9mm, 0.56 g, 12h). Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right, with profile eye and pi-style palmette / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left. Gitler & Tal IX.1O. Find patina. VF.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5256
LEVANTINE REGION, Uncertain. Mid 5th century-333 BC. AR Didrachm(?) (20mm, 9.41 g, 11h). Helmeted head of Athena right, with profile eye / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray to left; all on raised square within shallow incuse square. Unpublished in the standard references. Toned, rough and corroded surfaces. VF. Very rare.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5257
ARABIA, Northwestern. Lihyan. 2nd–1st centuries BC. AR “Drachm” (14.5mm, 3.79 g, 10h). Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right, with frontal eye; monogram (mark of value?) on cheek / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to lower left; all within incuse square . Cf. Huth 39 for similar style (idiosyncratic to this mint); otherwise unpublished in the standard references. Find patina, minor die break on reverse. Good VF.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5258
ARABIA, Northwestern. Lihyan. 2nd–1st centuries BC. Æ ‘Tetradrachm’ (20.5mm, 13.33 g, 9h). Imitating Athens. Schematic head right, two upward crescents on cheek / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray to left. Huth, Athenian, fig. 5, c; Huth 40 var. (single crescent on cheek). Mottled patina, trace deposits. VF.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5259
ARABIA, Northwestern. Lihyan. 2nd–1st centuries BC. Æ ‘Drachm’ (18mm, 4.67 g, 9h). Imitating Athens. Schematic head right / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray to left. Cf. Huth, Athenian, fig. 5, b-c (tetradrachms); cf. Huth 40 (tetradrachm); BMC Arabia pl. LV, 2-9. Brown surfaces. Good VF. Very rare fraction.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5260
ARABIA, Southern. Ma'in (Minaia)(?). Circa 250-150 BC. AR BLṬT – “Tetradrachm” (18mm, 14.61 g, 1h). Imitating Athens. Stylized helmeted head of Athena right / Owl standing right, head facing, wings folded; [olive spray and crescent to left?]. M. Huth, “Monetary Circulation in South West Arabia” in CCK, p. 86, 21 (same dies); Huth 157. Traces of find patina, numerous light cleaning scratches. VF. Very rare.


This fascinating issue of derivative Athenian type was struck on a folded flan of another coin, and was originally attributed by M. Huth in 1998 to a mint in eastern Arabia, where all of the six then-extant examples had been found (cf. M. Huth, “The ‘folded flan’ coinage of eastern Arabia: some preliminary comments” in Arabian Archaeology and Epigraphy 9 [1998]). The discovery of the al-Jawf hoard in 2002, however, definitively changed his view of this intriguing coinage. In his analysis of the hoard (in CCK), Huth determined that all of the previous six coins, and those found in the hoard, were struck at the same mint, in three phases that employed increasingly simplified methods. In the first phase, the coins were struck on previous tetradrachms that were folded over twice, forming a triangular shaped flan upon which derivative Athenian types were struck. The second phase consisted of coins struck on previous coins that had only been folded over once, forming a semicircular shaped flan. Finally, in the third phase, the host tetradrachms were cut into two halves that were then each folded once, then both halves were placed upon each other and joined by hammering, resulting in a triangular shape. The identification of the undertype used for this series in uncertain. While Huth originally surmised that Alexanders were the common host coin, his analysis of the al-Jawf hoard suggested that this was not likely. Though the question of the undertype remains unresolved, the hoard provided strong evidence that this series was not of eastern Arabian origin, but rather from a mint in the region of Wadi al-Jawf, in the Minaian trading sphere.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5261
PERSIA, Achaemenid Empire. temp. Xerxes I to Darios II. Circa 485-420 BC. AV Daric (12.5mm, 8.34 g). Lydo-Milesian standard. Sardes mint. Persian king or hero, wearing kidaris and kandys, quiver over shoulder, in kneeling-running stance right, holding spear and bow / Incuse punch. Carradice Type IIIb, Group A/B (pl. XIII, 27); Meadows, Administration 321; BMC Arabia pl. XXIV, 26; Sunrise 24. Faintly toned, some weakness to strike, a few minor marks. VF.


From the Henry A. Sauter Collection.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5262
PERSIA, Achaemenid Empire. temp. Artaxerxes II to Darios III. Circa 375-336 BC. AV Daric (14.5mm, 8.35 g). Lydo-Milesian standard. Sardes mint. Persian king or hero, wearing kidaris and kandys, quiver over shoulder, in kneeling-running stance right, holding spear and bow / Patterned incuse punch. Carradice Type IIIb Late (pl. XV, 50); Meadows, Administration –; BMC Arabia pl. XXV, 24; Sunrise 39 corr. (references). A couple of minor scuffs on obverse. Good VF. Well centered.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5263
PERSIA, Alexandrine Empire. Mazakes. Satrap of Mesopotamia, circa 331-323/2 BC. AR Tetradrachm (22mm, 16.52 g, 12h). Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left, unclear Aramaic letters to right. Le Rider, Alexander, pp. 214–9; Van Alfen, Owls, Group Ib, 64–6 (same obv. die); Nicolet-Pierre, Monnaies, pl. 26, e–f. Lightly toned, some roughness, a few delaminations. VF. Rare.


Mazakes is best known as the Persian satrap who took over Egypt after Sabakes fell in battle against Alexander the Great's army at the Granicus, and later handed over the province peacefully to the Macedonian king. Imitative owls in the name of Mazakes have been known for some time, and all were originally attributed to his satrapy in Egypt. However, it was clear that stylistic elements separated the coinage into two general groups. More recent hoards, especially the 1973 Iraq hoard, have shown that one of the groups of imitative owls was certainly not struck in Egypt, but somewhere in the territory of modern day Iraq. In his analysis of the 1973 hoard, M. Price ("Circulation at Babylon in 323 B.C." in W.E. Metcalf, ed., Mnemata: Papers in Memory of Nancy M. Waggoner [New York, 1991], pp. 63–72) changed the findspot from Iraq to the more specific cite of Babylon, based on anecdotal evidence (p. 63), and gave the series of Mazakes' owls to the city. However, such an assignment has forced numismatists to conduct mental gymnastics in order to rationalize the presence of Mazakes' coins at Babylon (cf. Van Alfen, Owls, pp. 27–33, and Le Rider, Alexander, pp. 215–7, for a summary of the previous research). It is clear that the attribution of the owls to Babylon is almost certainly incorrect, and other find evidence suggests an attribution to somewhere further north, perhaps in the satrapy of Mesopotamia (cf. Le Rider, op. cit., p. 217–9). In any event, this coinage clarifies the historical record regarding the disposition of Mazakes following his hand-over of Egypt, upon which subject the literary evidence is silent. As noted by Le Rider (op. cit., p. 215), one can compare Mazakes to other Persians who peacefully welcomed Alexander to their domains: Mazaios, who handed over Cilicia, was later made satrap in Babylon, and Mithrenes, who surrendered Sardes, was made satrap in Armenia. Also, the Persian noble Amminapes, who met Alexander in Egypt with Mazakes, was later made satrap of Parthia and Hyrkania. Thus, one would expect Mazakes to receive similarly favorable treatment, appointment to some position of authority. Interestingly, Mesopotamia is the only satrapy that is not addressed in the literary evidence when Alexander is organizing his eastern territories. As these tetradrachms of Mazakes are found in that region, and date to the period after Alexander's conquest, it is reasonable to suggest that Mazakes may have been appointed as satrap of Mesopotamia. It was also in the adjacent satrapy of Babylonia that Mazaios was allowed to strike a coinage in his name and types (influenced by his prior issues at Tarsos) for local use, and similar issues of local type and weight are known to have been issued at mints throughout the basin of the Tigris and Euphrates, from the time of Alexander to Seleukos I. Thus, these Athenian type tetradrachms likely constitute a local coinage of Mazakes, struck in the satrapy of Mesopotamia while he reigned there.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5264
PERSIA, Alexandrine Empire. Mazakes. Satrap of Mesopotamia, circa 331-323/2 BC. AR Tetradrachm (21.5mm, 16.76 g, 9h). Imitating Athens. Helmeted head of Athena right / Owl standing right, head facing; olive spray and crescent to left, "Mazakes symbol" and MZD[K] (in Aramaic) to right. Le Rider, Alexander, pp. 214–9; Van Alfen, Owls, Group IIIa, 79 (same obv. die); Nicolet-Pierre, Monnaies, pl. 26, b–c. Some weakness to strike, light roughness, scratches on reverse. Good VF. Rare without test cut.


Mazakes is best known as the Persian satrap who took over Egypt after Sabakes fell in battle against Alexander the Great's army at the Granicus, and later handed over the province peacefully to the Macedonian king. Imitative owls in the name of Mazakes have been known for some time, and all were originally attributed to his satrapy in Egypt. However, it was clear that stylistic elements separated the coinage into two general groups. More recent hoards, especially the 1973 Iraq hoard, have shown that one of the groups of imitative owls was certainly not struck in Egypt, but somewhere in the territory of modern day Iraq. In his analysis of the 1973 hoard, M. Price ("Circulation at Babylon in 323 B.C." in W.E. Metcalf, ed., Mnemata: Papers in Memory of Nancy M. Waggoner [New York, 1991], pp. 63–72) changed the findspot from Iraq to the more specific cite of Babylon, based on anecdotal evidence (p. 63), and gave the series of Mazakes' owls to the city. However, such an assignment has forced numismatists to conduct mental gymnastics in order to rationalize the presence of Mazakes' coins at Babylon (cf. Van Alfen, Owls, pp. 27–33, and Le Rider, Alexander, pp. 215–7, for a summary of the previous research). It is clear that the attribution of the owls to Babylon is almost certainly incorrect, and other find evidence suggests an attribution to somewhere further north, perhaps in the satrapy of Mesopotamia (cf. Le Rider, op. cit., p. 217–9). In any event, this coinage clarifies the historical record regarding the disposition of Mazakes following his hand-over of Egypt, upon which subject the literary evidence is silent. As noted by Le Rider (op. cit., p. 215), one can compare Mazakes to other Persians who peacefully welcomed Alexander to their domains: Mazaios, who handed over Cilicia, was later made satrap in Babylon, and Mithrenes, who surrendered Sardes, was made satrap in Armenia. Also, the Persian noble Amminapes, who met Alexander in Egypt with Mazakes, was later made satrap of Parthia and Hyrkania. Thus, one would expect Mazakes to receive similarly favorable treatment, appointment to some position of authority. Interestingly, Mesopotamia is the only satrapy that is not addressed in the literary evidence when Alexander is organizing his eastern territories. As these tetradrachms of Mazakes are found in that region, and date to the period after Alexander's conquest, it is reasonable to suggest that Mazakes may have been appointed as satrap of Mesopotamia. It was also in the adjacent satrapy of Babylonia that Mazaios was allowed to strike a coinage in his name and types (influenced by his prior issues at Tarsos) for local use, and similar issues of local type and weight are known to have been issued at mints throughout the basin of the Tigris and Euphrates, from the time of Alexander to Seleukos I. Thus, these Athenian type tetradrachms likely constitute a local coinage of Mazakes, struck in the satrapy of Mesopotamia while he reigned there.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5265
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy I Soter. As satrap, 323-305/4 BC. AR Tetradrachm (26mm, 17.16 g, 11h). In the name and types of Alexander III of Macedon. Memphis or Alexandreia mint. Struck circa 323-317 BC. Head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin / Zeus Nikephoros seated left; rose in left field, ΔI-O below throne. CPE 19; Svoronos –; Zervos Issue 2C, obv. die 202; Price 3971 var. (position of letters on rev.). Toned, minor weakness to strike. Good VF.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5266
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy I Soter. As satrap, 323-305/4 BC. AV Stater (17.5mm, 8.58 g, 12h). In the types of Alexander III of Macedon. Kyrene mint; Theupheides, magistrate. Struck circa 311 BC. Helmeted head of Athena right / Nike standing left, holding wreath and cradling stylis; [ΘEY to upper left], silphion plant below left wing. CPE 257; Svoronos 61; Naville 126 (same obv. die); SNG Copenhagen –; BMC 170a. Weakly struck, scratches. Good Fine. Extremely rare, only one example known, in Athens (all references refer to this example).


From the Henry A. Sauter Collection. Ex Superior (29 January 1979), lot 107.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5267
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy I Soter. 305/4-282 BC. AR Tetradrachm (28mm, 14.18 g, 12h). Alexandreia mint. Struck circa 294-282 BC. Diademed head right, wearing aegis, small Δ behind ear / Eagle standing left on thunderbolt; to left, P above monogram. CPE 157; Svoronos 253; SNG Copenhagen 69. Attractively toned, with iridescence around the devices, some marks, graffiti and banker’s mark on reverse. Good VF.


From the Mesogeios Collection. Ex Lugdunum 23 (14 December 2023), lot 81 (hammer CHF 2400); Hess 251 (7 May 1981), lot 137; Metropolitan Museum of Art Collection (Part II, Sotheby’s Zurich, 4 April 1973), lot 737; John Ward Collection (publ. 1901), 885.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5268
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy II Philadelphos. 285-246 BC. AR Tetradrachm (26.5mm, 13.98 g, 12h). Uncertain mint 19 (on Cyprus [Paphos?]). Diademed head of Ptolemy I right, aegis around neck / Eagle standing left on thunderbolt; to left, ΠT above ΣΩ. CPE 473; Svoronos 390; SNG Copenhagen –. Uneven toning, slight roughness, cleaning scratches, minor doubling on obverse. Near VF.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5269
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy III Euergetes. 246-222 BC. Æ Oktobol (47.5mm, 81.62 g, 12h). Alexandreia mint. Series 4E. Horned head of Zeus-Ammon right, wearing tainia with basileion / Eagle, wings closed, standing left, head right, on thunderbolt; filleted cornucopia over shoulder, no control marks. CPE B388; Svoronos 412; SNG Copenhagen 141. Rough brown surfaces, with some red-brown encrustation, flan flaws, minor doubling on obverse. Fine.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5270
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Ptolemy V Epiphanes. 204-180 BC. Æ Hemidrachm (35.5mm, 26.74 g, 1h). Tyre mint. Horned head of Zeus-Ammon right, wearing tainia / Eagle standing left on thunderbolt; to left, club above kausia; filleted cornucopia over shoulder, Π between legs. Svoronos 1059 var. (no kausia); SNG Copenhagen 498 var. (same); CNG 118, lot 629. Earthen dark green patina, areas of weak strike. Near VF. Extremely rare with kausia, unknown to Svoronos, only one in CoinArchives; the PtolemAE Project website estimates five known.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5271
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Kleopatra III & Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyros). 117/6-108/7 BC. AR Tetradrachm (24mm, 13.75 g, 12h). Alexandreia mint. Dated RY 6 (112/1 BC). Diademed head of Ptolemy I right, wearing aegis around neck / Eagle standing left on thunderbolt; Lς (date) to left, ΠA to right. Svoronos 1667; Olivier 5314–28 (obv. die D301); SNG Copenhagen 351; DCA2 1144. Deep iridescent tone, areas of minor roughness, a couple minor flan flaws. Good VF.


From the Henry A. Sauter Collection.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5272
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Kleopatra III & Ptolemy IX Soter II (Lathyros). 117/6-108/7 BC. AR Tetradrachm (24.5mm, 14.10 g, 12h). Alexandreia mint. Dated RY 9 (109/8 BC). Diademed head of Ptolemy I right, wearing aegis around neck / Eagle standing left on thunderbolt; LΘ (date) to left, ΠA to right. Svoronos 1670; Olivier 5619–34 (obv. die D380); SNG Copenhagen 353–5; DCA2 1144. Toned, minor deposits, a few scratches and marks. Near EF.


From the Henry A. Sauter Collection.
Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 5 & 6 . 5273
PTOLEMAIC KINGS of EGYPT. Kleopatra VII Thea Neotera. 51-30 BC. Æ (17.5mm, 4.36 g, 12h). Chalkis ad Libanon mint. Dated RY 21 (Egyptian) and 6 (Phoenician) of Kleopatra (32/1 BC). Diademed and draped bust right / Athena advancing left, holding shield and spear; dates in legend. Svoronos –; Olivier & Aumaître 234 (D16/R56); RPC I 4773.11 (this coin); HGC 9, 1453; DCA 478. Earthen dark green surfaces, off center. VF.