Uncertain (Armorica or East?), 1/4 Stater, 3rd century BC
Gold - EF(40-45)
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.
Head of Apollo, laureate, right.
Biga galloping to the right, driven by a charioteer brandishing a baton. In the exergue, symbols evoking the legend ‘ΦIΛIΠΠOY’.
Quarter stater that appears to be unpublished. The laurel wreath has small scuff marks, and the edge is slightly bent at 3h. We attribute this coin to the large group of the imitations of Philip II's staters that L-P Delestrée includes in his armorican ensemble. It should be noted that, considering the datations of these coinage, it is not possible to link this coin to any Gallic tribe as can be done for later coinage. We believe that it is currently impossible to link this example to any of the examples illustrated by the author in his Nouvel Atlas, Vol. 2. However, we do find similarities with some of them. Note that what look like symbols under the horses are in fact their front and rear legs, but distorted and compressed to fit on the die. The forelegs also show a horizontal die break. We note that the legend has already been largely reduced to a few symbols, vertical ‘I’s with pelleted tips, while the portrait is still with almost all its original ‘Greek’ features and has barely been degenerated. Our attention is turned to the large Normandy group, where we find similarities with example Dt. 2028, whose reverse shows no marks under the horses, and the subsequent example, 2029, which has a portrait with similar features. It seems to us that we must exclude a date later than the first half of the 2nd century, since, as the Nouvel Atlas illustrates it, the types have already much more pronounced Celtic features. As our type has only slightly degenerated, we can estimate that the period of production was between the 3rd century BC and perhaps until the first quarter of the 2nd century BC. However, we cannot exclude the same ensemble, but this time for eastern and central-eastern Gaul. Although there is no symbol on this specimen, we note similarities with the specimens illustrated in the Nouvel Atlas T.3 (Pl. I). This is also observed in the portraits, especially the slightly wavy truncation of the neck of some, a feature we find on our example. We note the example Dt. 3009 (type ‘Montmorot’), whose resemblance is striking. Ultimately, we include our example in the large group of imitations of Philip II by L. -P. Delestrée, linked to the Armorican area, but its unpublished status makes the attribution of its geographical area of minting highly uncertain and serves here more for convenience than as a proper attribution, while in no way excluding a provenance from the east of Celtic territory rather than the west.
1.95 gr
Gold
Although nowadays gold enjoys a reputation as the king of precious metals, that was not always the case. For example, in Ancient Greece, Corinthian bronze was widely considered to be superior. However, over the course of time, it has established itself as the prince of money, even though it frequently vies with silver for the top spot as the standard.
Nevertheless, there are other metals which appear to be even more precious than this duo, take for example rhodium and platinum. That is certain. Yet, if the ore is not as available, how can money be produced in sufficient quantities? It is therefore a matter of striking a subtle balance between rarity and availability.
But it gets better: gold is not only virtually unreactive, whatever the storage conditions (and trouser pockets are hardly the most precious of storage cases), but also malleable (coins and engravers appreciate that).
It thus represents the ideal mix for striking coins without delay – and we were not going to let it slip away!
The chemical symbol for gold is Au, which derives from its Latin name aurum. Its origins are probably extraterrestrial, effectively stardust released following a violent collision between two neutron stars. Not merely precious, but equally poetic…
The first gold coins were minted by the kings of Lydia, probably between the 8th and 6th century BC. Whereas nowadays the only gold coins minted are investment coins (bullion coins) or part of limited-edition series aimed at collectors, that was not always the case. And gold circulated extensively from hand to hand and from era to era, from the ancient gold deposits of the River Pactolus to the early years of the 20th century.
As a precious metal, in the same way as silver, gold is used for minting coins with intrinsic value, which is to say the value of which is constituted by the metal from which they are made. Even so, nowadays, the value to the collector frequently far exceeds that of the metal itself...
It should be noted that gold, which is naturally very malleable, is frequently supplemented with small amounts of other metals to render it harder.
The millesimal fineness (or alloy) of a coin indicates the exact proportion (in parts per thousand) of gold included in the composition. We thus speak, for example, of 999‰ gold or 999 parts of gold 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.
An “EF(40-45)” quality
As in numismatics it is important that the state of conservation of an item be carefully evaluated before it is offered to a discerning collector with a keen eye.
This initially obscure acronym comprising two words describing the state of conservation is explained clearly here:
Extremely Fine
This means – more prosaically – that the coin has circulated well from hand to hand and pocket to pocket but the impact on its wear remains limited: the coins retains much of its mint luster, sharp detailing and little sign of being circulated. Closer examination with the naked eye reveals minor scratches or nicks.
