351, Lot: 385. Estimate $350. Sold for $550. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

ARABIA, Southern. Himyar. Mubāhil dhu-Raydān. Circa 50 BC. AR Hemidrachm (13mm, 1.93 g, 11h). Qatabanian type. Uncertain mint (Raydan?). Bare male head right / Bearded head right; MBHL Ḏ [RYDN SM] (king’s name in South Arabian) above, [royal Qatabanian monogram to left], ‘oblong symbol’ (of ‘Anbi) to right, monogram below. Cf. CAF 1.8bii (for type); Huth 366 var. (monogram reversed). Good VF, toned. Attractive style.

Mubāhil dhu-Raydān was the founder of the Himyarite kingdom that split away from Qataban during the first century AD. The present coin uses the standard Qatabanian types, but it is unknown whether this issue was struck before or after he formed his new kingdom.