The Sought-After Armenian Tiara Type of Antony
432, Lot: 281. Estimate $500. Sold for $1000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee. |
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The Triumvirs. Mark Antony. Autumn 37 BC. AR Denarius (19mm, 3.56 g, 6h). Antioch or military mint traveling with Canidius Crassus in Armenia. Bare head right; ANTONIVS • AVGV[R • COS • DES • ITER •] ET • TERT clockwise around from upper left / Seven-pointed Armenian tiara right, [decorated with three stars]; crossed bow and arrow behind; IMP • TERTIO • III • VIR • R • P • C clockwise around from upper right. Crawford 539/1; CRI 297; Sydenham 1205; RSC 19; Type as RBW 1828. Fine, toned, a few light scratches, banker’s mark on portrait. Rare.
From the Andrew McCabe Collection.
Ten times rarer than Cleopatra: a check of online resources shows many more Cleopatra/Antony denarii with the small Armenian tiara behind his head, than this rarer Antony type with the full reverse tiara. This coin came from an old English collection for which I have not identified any provenances in the usual classic auction resources, but other coins from the same source had dateable provenances from 1930s to 1950s. [Andrew McCabe]