432, Lot: 224. Estimate $150. Sold for $220. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Anonymous. 189-180 BC. Æ Triens (2mm, 11.06 g, 9h). Small bird and TOD series. Rome mint. Helmeted head of Minerva right; •••• (mark of value) above / Prow of galley right; small bird standing right on T above; •••• (mark of value) to right. Crawford 141/4b; Sydenham 346b; RBW 622 (this coin) corr. (Cr. 141/4a). VF, dark brown and green patina, some roughness.

From the Andrew McCabe Collection. Ex RBW Collection (Numismatica Ars Classica 61, 5 October 2011), lot 616; Künker 124 (16 March 2007, lot 8244; Gibboni Collection (Münzen und Medaillen GmbH 19 (16 May 2006), lot 656; Numismatica Ars Classica M (20 March 2002), lot 2434.

Roberto Russo in Essays Hersh noted that the bronze coinage of RRC 141 was composed of two different series, one, alike with the denarius type, showing a small bird – in fact, a wren or Todus – and the word TOD, presumably a pun for a moneyer whose cognomen was 'wren', and the other series showing a legionary eagle perched on legionary standard (aquila) and holding a wreath in its beak. This is the very much rarer Wren and T(OD) issue, not the eagle and wreath issue. Stylistically, apart from entirely different symbols when examined closely, the Wren and TOD is otherwise similar to the Eagle and Wreath series. Curiously, but I think coincidentally, the silver type also comes with two different birds – a wren, as well as a raven. The type with raven is, however, invariably plated and likely always unofficial. This coin is illustrated in McCabe, Essays Russo (p.195 coin RRC 141.4.2) as a style example of the obverse head and prow of the related anonymous bronzes of McCabe Group J2 – per the next coin. [Andrew McCabe]