141, Lot: 78. Estimate $100. Sold for $172. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

ASIA MINOR, Uncertain. Circa 4th century BC or later. AR Tetradrachm (23mm, 16.25 g). Head of Athena right, wearing crested Attic helmet / Owl standing right, head facing; olive sprig and crescent behind; all within incuse square. Cf. Svoronos, Athènes pl. 20, 8. VF, some encrustation, test cut on head.

This tetradrachm illustrates the influence the Athenian "owl" had on eastern coinage. From Egypt to Babylon and from Syria to Arabia the Athenian tetradrachm was either countermarked or imitated for local use. The imitations varied increasingly from the prototype over time, and eventually purely local types were produced. These issues were generally replaced by the issues of Alexander after the 4th century BC, but traces of Athenian influence appear in Arabian coinage into the Roman period.