Islands off Attica, Stater, ca. 470-440 BC
Aegina - Silver - VF(30-35) - HGC:6-435
PLEASE NOTE: this collector's item is unique. We therefore cannot guarantee its availability over time and recommend that you do not delay too long in completing your purchase if you are interested.
"T-back" turtle with trefoil collar.
Incuse square with large skew device.
A very interesting stater with almost perfect centering. The turtle can be seen in its entirety, with full globules along the carapace in the middle and its characteristic long fins. The incuse square on the reverse is almost complete and perfectly defined. The iconography is interesting, as this is one of the last Aegina staters depicting a sea turtle. The choice of this animal is associated with the city's maritime power up until the last third of the 5th century BC. Following the defeat of the Aeginians by the Athenians in the First Peloponnesian War, Aegina lost its power and forcibly joined the League of Delos. The city then chose to depict a land tortoise on its coinage. The sea turtle is a recurring iconography on the city's coinage, since it has existed since the 6th century B.C., around a century after the creation of coinage as we know it. Aegina was the first city to issue silver coins, and thanks to its commercial and military power on the seas, its standard spread to other parts of Greece and Crete. The Athenians in particular were inspired by it. The way in which sea turtles are depicted on coinage has evolved slightly, and now mainly concerns the carapace. This involves the presence of a collar and its thickness, as well as the full globules on the top of the carapace. The “T-back” and trefoil collar style is the latest, replacing the collar style with a more or less thin line. As for the reverse punch, there are different types, and several are used simultaneously during the same period. The turtle differs from the turtoise in that its long legs are thinner and its shell is smooth. A very interesting coin thanks to its iconography and the historical context in which it was minted! Meadows Group IIIa; HGC 6, 435; SNG Copenhagen 507 and SNG Delepierre 1522. Ex Vinchon, 26 April 1999, lot 152. Faune d'Argent Collection.
12.31 gr
Silver
Silver can fall into your pocket but also falls between copper and gold in group 11 of the periodic table. Three metals frequently used to mint coins. There are two good reasons for using silver: it is a precious metal and oxidizes little upon contact with air. Two advantages not to be taken for granted.
Here is thus a metal that won’t vanish into thin air.
It’s chemical symbol Ag is derived from the Latin word for silver (argentum), compare Ancient Greek ἄργυρος (árgyros). Silver has a white, shiny appearance and, to add a little bit of esotericism or polytheism to the mix, is traditionally dedicated to the Moon or the goddess Artemis (Diana to the Romans).
As a precious metal, just like gold, silver is used to mint coins with an intrinsic value, meaning their value is constituted by the material of which they are made. It should be noted that small quantities of other metals are frequently added to silver to make it harder, as it is naturally very malleable (you can’t have everything) and thus wears away rapidly.
The first silver coins probably date back to the end of the 7th century BC and were struck on the Greek island of Aegina. These little beauties can be recognized by the turtle featured on the reverse.
The patina of silver ranges from gray to black.
The millesimal fineness (or alloy) of a coin indicates the exact proportion (in parts per thousand) of silver included in the composition. We thus speak, for example, of 999‰ silver or 999 parts of silver per 1 part of other metals. This measure is important for investment coins such as bullion. In France, it was expressed in carats until 1995.
