Lot 1801

Description

Italy, Bruttium, Rhegion, (c.450 B.C. [Arnold-Biucchi chronology]), silver tetradrachm, (17.26 grams), obv. lion's head facing, within dotted border, rev. Iokastos the traditional founder of the city naked to waist and seated to left, holding staff and resting left hand on hip, all within laurel wreath, legend around anti-clockwise, RECI NOS, (S.498 [£1250], Herzfelder, H., 'Catalogue des Tetradrachmes et Drachmes de Rhegion' 1, [obv.D1, rev.R1 same dies], [Revue Numismatique (RN) 1956], Arnold Biucchi 9 [This Coin], SNG ANS 635). Some flatness on the high surface of the facing lion, also with and an interesting die crack on the reverse, original obverse die somewhat rusted, otherwise good very fine, and very rare.

Ex. Randazzo Hoard (no.9), see ANS Numismatic Studies 18 'The Randazzo Hoard 1980 and Sicilian Chronology in the Early Fifth Century B.C.' (see p.17-9, 48). Although ten tetradrachms of this city was present in the Randazzo Hoard, only four where of this type and all came from the first obverse and first reverse dies of this series. The reverse die shows a breaking up and a similar example with the same degree of die-breaking occurs on Plate XX No.1q in RN 1956. Herzfelder in his extensive study on this coinage knew of 19 examples of this coin from these dies of which 9 were from the same state of die deteriation as this example from the Randazzo Hoard (he lists the references of all the known examples). Many of the examples known are in public collections. For all dies Herzfelder was only able to find 46 coins of this type together with the four from Randazzo make only 50 surviving examples today. Copies of both books on Herzfelder essay and Randazzo Hoard are included in the Numismatic Literature section of this catalogue.