Classical Numismatic Group, LLC - Triton XXVIII – Sessions 1-4 . 239 Numistats ref: 672730
No match
Greek
Category
CRETE, Gortyna. Circa 330-270 BC. AR Stater (25.5mm, 11.42 g, 3h). Europa seated half-right in tree, lifting her veil in her right hand, left hand resisting an eagle as it ravages her / Bull standing right, head reverted. Svoronos, Numismatique 83 (same dies as illustration); Le Rider, Crétoises pl. V, 16 (same obv. die); SNG Copenhagen 443 (same obv. die); BMC 29; Dewing 1022 (same obv. die). Toned, underlying luster, traces of find patina, overstruck on uncertain type as usual, cleaning marks. EF. Well centered and struck for type.
From the Columbus Collection. Ex Classical Numismatic Group 100 (7 October 2015), lot 1399 (conserved since).
While the myth of Europa as one of Zeus’ numerous trysts is well-known and has been the subject of literature and art since at least the fifth century BC, certain portions of the entire episode received more attention than others. What occurred when Zeus brought Europa to Crete is one such part. According to the later authors Theophrastos (371-ca. 287 BC) and Pliny the Elder (AD 23-79), Zeus consummated his abduction of Europa in a plane-tree (ἡ πλάτανος), an event commemorated on a series of silver and bronze issues from the Cretan city of Gortyna, traditional site of that event.
According to the traditional account, Europa was the daughter of Agenor, king of Tyre, the sister of Kadmos, the legendary founder of Corinth, and Kilix, for whom Cilicia was named, and was a descendant of Io, one of Zeus’ numerous other mortal female trysts. Europa, too, attracted the eye of Zeus, who, transforming himself into a white bull, seduced the young girl, carrying her across the Aegean Sea to the region of Gortyna on Crete, where she was made the first queen of Crete. Gortyna’s special involvement in this myth - it was claimed the plane-tree was still extant centuries after the event - made its depiction on the civic coinage an important reminder of the city’s role in Crete’s early history. Description
From the Columbus Collection. Ex Classical Numismatic Group 100 (7 October 2015), lot 1399 (conserved since).
While the myth of Europa as one of Zeus’ numerous trysts is well-known and has been the subject of literature and art since at least the fifth century BC, certain portions of the entire episode received more attention than others. What occurred when Zeus brought Europa to Crete is one such part. According to the later authors Theophrastos (371-ca. 287 BC) and Pliny the Elder (AD 23-79), Zeus consummated his abduction of Europa in a plane-tree (ἡ πλάτανος), an event commemorated on a series of silver and bronze issues from the Cretan city of Gortyna, traditional site of that event.
According to the traditional account, Europa was the daughter of Agenor, king of Tyre, the sister of Kadmos, the legendary founder of Corinth, and Kilix, for whom Cilicia was named, and was a descendant of Io, one of Zeus’ numerous other mortal female trysts. Europa, too, attracted the eye of Zeus, who, transforming himself into a white bull, seduced the young girl, carrying her across the Aegean Sea to the region of Gortyna on Crete, where she was made the first queen of Crete. Gortyna’s special involvement in this myth - it was claimed the plane-tree was still extant centuries after the event - made its depiction on the civic coinage an important reminder of the city’s role in Crete’s early history. Description
EF
Grade
5752.5 EUR
Starting
9587.51 EUR
Estimate
EUR
Realized