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ISLANDS off THRACE, Thasos. Circa 90-75 BC. AR Tetradrachm (34.5mm, 16.88 g, 11h). “Imitative” series. Head of young Dionysos right, wearing ivy wreath / Herakles standing facing, head left, holding club in right hand, lion skin draped over left arm; monogram to inner left. Prokopov, Silberprägung, Group XII, 580–3 (obv. die V AA6); Le Rider, Thasiennes 52; HGC 6, 359. Toned, traces of find patina, minor marks, struck with worn obverse die. VF. Very rare with this monogram, Prokopov records only 16 examples, 15 of which are in museums; twelve additional in CoinArchives.
Traditionally, this monogram has been thought to represent the first four letters of Aesillas' name (in Greek form), similar to the Thasian tetradrachms that bear the monogram of Sura (see Bauslaugh p. 23). Aesillas was Roman quaestor in Macedon, circa 95-70 BC. Prokopov, however, places the issues with this monogram early in her "Thasian type" coinage, which began circa 148 BC. This placement, however, is contradicted by her own hoard evidence. According to Prokopov, coins from dies tied to this monogram have been found in the following hoards: Mezek, Municipiului Bucureşti (CH II 104), Şieu Odorhei (CH VIII 300), and Sînpetru (IGCH 637). Two of these are unhelpful in dating, as the Mezek hoard publication is still forthcoming, and the date of c. 250-200 BC reported for Şieu Odorhei is impossible, as it predates the majority of the coinage in the hoard (Thasian spread-flan tetradrachms and Macedonian First Meris tetradrachms). The remaining two, Municipiului Bucureşti and Sînpetru, however, are dated to circa 94 BC and the early 1st century BC, respectively. If these dates of deposit are correct, then the assumption that the monogram represents Aesillas is probably correct.
Closing Date and Time: 7 February 2024 at 10:19:20 ET.
All winning bids are subject to a 20% buyer’s fee.
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