292, Lot: 3. Estimate $500. Sold for $1200. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

THESSALY, Larissa. Circa 479-460 BC. AR Hemidrachm (14mm, 2.59 g, 6h). Head of Jason left, wearing petasos / ΛA below, SAE above (retrograde and upside down), sandal of Jason left; all within incuse square. BCD Thessaly II 135 (same dies; hammer of $9500). VF, lightly toned, porous.

From the BCD Collection.

The reverse omits the “RI” from the ethnic. If this odd exclusion was found only on this die we might simply discard it as an engraving error, but the omission of the two letters on at least two other reverse dies (BCD II 133, which is the same reverse die as BCD Thessaly I 1096, and BCD Thessaly II 134) complicates the matter. BCD notes (following lot 133 of BCD Thessaly II): “It is evident though that these letters can be formed by the intricate design of the leather straps of the sandal. The early Greek die-cutters had a very subtle sense of humour that often shows as a disguised play on words or a design puzzle such as this in their artwork.”