BITHYNIA, Heraclaea Pontica. Gordian III. AD 238-244. Æ (34mm, 24.24 g, 6h). Near VF.

Keystone 17 – The W. Toliver Besson Collection
Lot: 78. Estimated: $ 500

Roman Provincial, Bronze

Sold For $ 2 500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Go to Live

BITHYNIA, Heraclaea Pontica. Gordian III. AD 238-244. Æ (34mm, 24.24 g, 6h). Laureate and cuirassed bust right, seen from the front, eagle on breastplate / Herakles and the Lernaean Hydra – Herakles standing left, grasping one of the Hydra’s heads with his left hand, holding club overhead with his right hand and preparing to strike the Lernaean Hydra before him; behind, quiver and bow. RPC VII.2 2086.6 (this coin); RG 217. Brown surfaces, roughness. Near VF. Rare.

From the W. Toliver Besson Collection. Ex Leu Numismatik Web Auction 9 (23 February 2019), lot 670; Numismatik Naumann 64 (1 April 2018), lot 264.

For his Second Labor, Herakles had to kill the Lernaean Hydra, the offspring of Typhon and Echidna, and the sibling of the Nemean Lion, the Chimaera, and Kerberos. Inhabiting the swamp near Lake Lerna in the Argolid, the creature possessed numerous mortal and one immortal head on its single body; should one head be removed, two more would grow in its place. When Herakles reached the swamp where the Hydra dwelt, he drew it out of its lair near the spring of Amymone. Thereupon, wielding a harvesting sickle, he attempted to decapitate the creature. When this proved unsuccessful, because of the Hydra’s regenerative ability, Herakles enlisted the assistance of his nephew Iolaos, who devised a plan: once Herakles had cut off one of the creature’s heads, Iolaos would cauterize the stump with a burning firebrand. The plan succeeded, and the Hydra was destroyed. Herakles placed its one immortal head under a large rock on the sacred way between Lerna and Elaius and dipped his arrows in its poisonous blood.

Closing Date and Time: 22 July 2026 at 10:25:40 ET.



Winning bids are subject to a 22.5% buyer's fee for bids placed on this website, 25% for all others.