Ancients: , SARONIC ISLANDS. Aegina. Ca. 480-457 BC. AR stater (18mm, 12.16 gm). NGC Fine 3/5 - 2/5, countermarks....
SARONIC ISLANDS. Aegina. Ca. 480-457 BC. AR stater (18mm, 12.16 gm). NGC Fine 3/5 - 2/5, countermarks. Sea turtle, viewed from above, head turned sideways, with trefoil collar and row of five dots down center of shell / Large skew pattern incuse with five sunken compartments. HGC 6, 435 (ca. 470/465-445/440 BC). Meadows Group IIIa. Lovely cabinet toning. The city of Aegina, located on the Saronic Gulf island of the same name, appears to have been the first European city to mint coins of any type, starting circa 550 BC. From earliest times, the maritime city placed a sea turtle on the obverse of its coins, with a simple abstract incuse punch on the reverse. These "turtles" soon circulated widely and impressed neighboring Athens enough that it began striking its own silver coins a few decades later. The sea turtle on Aeginetan coins underwent a slow evolution as the decades passed, with a brief divergence in the mid-sixth century of depicting a land tortoise with a segmented shell. The final form of the sea turtle was struck during circa 480-457 BC, after the Aeginetan navy distinguished itself at the Battle of Salamis. After about 450 BC the obverse type switched permanently to a land tortoise, perhaps reflecting the eclipse of Aegina's naval power by nearby Athens. HID10510052018 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
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SARONIC ISLANDS. Aegina. Ca. 480-457 BC. AR stater (18mm, 12.16 gm). NGC Fine 3/5 - 2/5, countermarks. Sea turtle, viewed from above, head turned sideways, with trefoil collar and row of five dots down center of shell / Large skew pattern incuse with five sunken compartments. HGC 6, 435 (ca. 470/465-445/440 BC). Meadows Group IIIa. Lovely cabinet toning. The city of Aegina, located on the Saronic Gulf island of the same name, appears to have been the first European city to mint coins of any type, starting circa 550 BC. From earliest times, the maritime city placed a sea turtle on the obverse of its coins, with a simple abstract incuse punch on the reverse. These "turtles" soon circulated widely and impressed neighboring Athens enough that it began striking its own silver coins a few decades later. The sea turtle on Aeginetan coins underwent a slow evolution as the decades passed, with a brief divergence in the mid-sixth century of depicting a land tortoise with a segmented shell. The final form of the sea turtle was struck during circa 480-457 BC, after the Aeginetan navy distinguished itself at the Battle of Salamis. After about 450 BC the obverse type switched permanently to a land tortoise, perhaps reflecting the eclipse of Aegina's naval power by nearby Athens. HID10510052018 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved
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