Category Archives: hemidrachm

Hera on Ancient Coins – Queen of the Gods

CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz ….. I sing of golden-throned Hera whom Rhea bare. Queen of the immortals is she, surpassing all in beauty: she is the sister and the wife of loud-thundering Zeus, —the glorious one whom all the blessed throughout high Olympus reverence and honour even as Zeus who delights in […]

The post Hera on Ancient Coins – Queen of the Gods appeared first on CoinWeek: Rare Coin, Currency, and Bullion News for Collectors.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Ancient Greek Coins of Aiolis: The Minor Cities

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. The previous article that I wrote on Aiolis covered the larger commercial cities of Aigai, Cyme, and Myrina. I singled them out because these cities produced stephanophoric tetradrachms in the mid-second century BCE. This article covers the rest of the cities in Aiolis, which is a small region on […]

The post Ancient Greek Coins of Aiolis: The Minor Cities appeared first on CoinWeek: Rare Coin, Currency, and Bullion News for Collectors.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Ancient Greek Coins of Aiolis: Aigai, Cyme and Myrina

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. Aiolis was a small region on the west coast of Asia Minor (see Figure 1). It was surrounded by Lydia to the east, Mysia to the north, Ionia to the south, and the Aegean Sea to the west. Its northern part was opposite the island of Lesbos, and its […]

The post Ancient Greek Coins of Aiolis: Aigai, Cyme and Myrina appeared first on CoinWeek: Rare Coin, Currency, and Bullion News for Collectors.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Coins of Ancient Greek Troas (Troad): Part 2

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 * * * This article is the second part on the coinage of Troas, a region of northwest Asia Minor adjacent to the Hellespont. Its history goes back to the Bronze Age and the Hittites, and Troy (Ilium), […]

The post Coins of Ancient Greek Troas (Troad): Part 2 appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

The Archaic Smile on Ancient Coins

CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz ….. Mona Lisa must have had the highway blues, You can tell by the way she smiled… — Bob Dylan, “Visions of Johanna”, Blonde on Blonde (1966) ANCIENT GREEK COINS struck before 500 BCE are called “archaic” by numismatists. Actually, archaic features continue to appear on coins for […]

The post The Archaic Smile on Ancient Coins appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Steve Benner: Ten Coins I’d Love to Own

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. Like most coin collectors, I have a list of coins I want to own. The list I plan to cover in this article will be personal and not just a list of the most famous ancient coins, so I won’t be listing decadrachms, octadrachms, or even pentadrachms. It’s not […]

The post Steve Benner: Ten Coins I’d Love to Own appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Steve Benner: Ten Coins I’d Love to Own

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek …..   Like most coin collectors, I have a list of coins I want to own. The list I plan to cover in this article will be personal and not just a list of the most famous ancient coins, so I won’t be listing decadrachms, octadrachms, or even pentadrachms. It’s […]

The post Steve Benner: Ten Coins I’d Love to Own appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

The Coins of Caesar’s Killers

By Michael T. Shutterly for CoinWeek ….. Gaius Julius Caesar was murdered at a meeting of the Roman Senate on the Ides of March, 44 BCE. The men who killed Caesar claimed that they were saving the Roman Republic from an oppressive dictator who had taken too much power for himself. The assassins included men […]

The post The Coins of Caesar’s Killers appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Theodosia, Gorgippia, & Phanagoria: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. This is the third article in a series on the Greek colonies on the northern coast of the Black Sea (Euxine Sea). The first article was on Olbia, the second was on Tyras and Chersonesus, and this one covers the cities of Theodosia, Gorgippia, and Phanagoria in the Cimmerian […]

The post Theodosia, Gorgippia, & Phanagoria: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Tyras & Chersonesus: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek ….. This is the second article in a series on the Greek colonies on the northern coast of the Black Sea (Euxine Sea). The first article was on Olbia, and this one covers the cities of Tyras and Chersonesus. Most of the colonies in the area, which is now southern […]

The post Tyras & Chersonesus: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Olbia: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast

By Steve Benner for CoinWeek …..   The northern coast of the Black Sea (Euxine Sea), which is southern Ukraine and Russia today, was considered to be at the extreme edge of the ancient Greek world. The area was settled during the great colonization period of Greek history in the eighth through sixth centuries BCE. […]

The post Olbia: Ancient Greek Coins of the Black Sea’s Northern Coast appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

NGC Ancients – Coins From the Strait of Messina

Ancient Coins issued from colonies bordering the Strait of Messina are numerous and interesting Strait of Messina Coins By Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) …… The Strait of Messina, which separates Italy and Sicily and is just two miles wide at its narrowest point, has been the scene of many historic events. Countless armies have crossed […]

The post NGC Ancients – Coins From the Strait of Messina appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

NGC Ancients: Silver Coin “Pocket Change” of Central Greece

Interesting silver coins from Central Greece are available for modest prices   By Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) …… One popular area for ancient Greek coinage is central Greece, home to a number of important cities, notably Athens. From the sixth century BCE onward, a great variety of coins were struck there, principally in silver and […]

The post NGC Ancients: Silver Coin “Pocket Change” of Central Greece appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

NGC Ancients – Collecting Greek Coins on a Budget

Greek coins are available for every budget   By Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (NGC) …… As we saw in the last column, ancient Roman coins offer some unexpected opportunities for collectors at most every level of budget. This month we’ll focus on similar bargains available in the field of ancient Greek coins, many of which are […]

The post NGC Ancients – Collecting Greek Coins on a Budget appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

NGC Ancients: Roman Coinage of Emperor Nero

The coinage of Nero spans his long reigns as Caesar and emperor Nero is among the best-known of all Roman emperors – but not for good reasons. During his eventful reign, from 54 to 68 CE, Nero had relatively few accomplishments, yet is credited with a long list of failures. The fact that he ruled […]

The post NGC Ancients: Roman Coinage of Emperor Nero appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Stack’s Bowers NYINC Auction of World & Ancient Coins Realizes $4.86 Million

Stack’s Bowers Galleries rang in the New Year with tremendous results at the January New York International Auction. An excellent array of coins was anchored by several superb collections, including Selections from the Estate of Richard Doty, Selections from the Michael Druck Collection, The Mezo Toth Kalman Collection, The Dr. Michael Popoff Collection and Selections […]

The post Stack’s Bowers NYINC Auction of World & Ancient Coins Realizes $4.86 Million appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Turtles and Tortoises on Ancient Coins

CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz …. A hare one day ridiculed the short feet and slow pace of the Tortoise, who replied, laughing: “Though you be swift as the wind, I will beat you in a race.” … On the day appointed for the race the two started together. The Tortoise never for […]

The post Turtles and Tortoises on Ancient Coins appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek

Coinage of Kyrene: A Greek City in Libya

CoinWeek Ancient Coin Series by Mike Markowitz…. THE JEBEL AKHDAR OR “GREEN MOUNTAINS” OF LIBYA stretches eastward from Benghazi for a hundred miles (160 km) along the coast. With an average annual rainfall of 15-20 inches (375-500 mm), these limestone hills are the most forested region in North Africa. In ancient times, before centuries of […]

The post Coinage of Kyrene: A Greek City in Libya appeared first on CoinWeek.

Continue Reading on CoinWeek