Lot 5048

Description

Thrace, Byzantion, silver siglos or drachm (Persian standard), (416-357 B.C.), (5.29 grams), obv. cow standing to left on dolphin, **PU*, above, foreleg raised, rev. quadripartite incuse square of "mill-sail" pattern, the surfaces granulated, (S.1579, BMC 1-8, SNG Cop. 476, SNG BMC Black Sea 21ff.). Granular porous surface, but attractive, good very fine and very scarce.

Ex Noble Numismatics Sale 58 (lot 3482) and Sale 79 (lot 3402). A similar example in our Sale 72 realised $850. The scarce drachms of this weight were issued at a weight standard to coincide with that of the Persian siglos. This is in contrast to the next issue of drachms, where a large weight reduction took place to correspond to the Philip II standard of 15.3 grams for a tetradrachm, (Philip besieged the city in 340-339 B.C). Other authors believe the issue was later and not contemporary with the control by Philip II of Macedon.