Hercules Wrestling the Cretan Bull

367, Lot: 336. Estimate $300. Sold for $425. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

THRACE, Hadrianopolis. Gordian III. AD 238-244. Æ (28mm, 9.07 g, 7h). Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / The seventh labor: Hercules standing right, restraining Cretan bull by grabbing its horn and neck. Jurukova, Hadrianople 642 (V270/R616); Varbaov 3706. Near VF, green patina.

Hercules, made temporarily insane by the goddess Hera, murdered his wife and children. Once recovered, and distressed by his actions, he consulted the Delphic Oracle to find a means of expiating his sin. As a punishment, Apollo replied that the hero would have to serve his cousin Eurystheus, the king of Tiryns and a man whom Hercules despised, for a period of twelve years. Because Eurystheus also hated Hercules, he devised a series of ten feats of such difficulty that they would be either insurmountable or Hercules would die try to complete them. Because Hercules received assistance in completing two of the tasks, Eurystheus added two more, with each becoming more fantastic. Once he accomplished the Labors, he was absolved of his guilt and proceeded to perform many other heroic feats.

Hercules seventh labor was to capture the Cretan Bull. Minos, the king of Crete, gave the hero permission to take the bull away, as it had been causing destruction on the island. Hercules subdued the Bull with his bare hands and shipped it back to Athens. Although Eurystheus wished to sacrifice the bull to Hera, the goddess refused the sacrifice because it reflected glory on her sworn enemy. The bull was released and wandered into the town of Marathon, where it became known as the Marathonian Bull.