Need help with Alexander Tet Attribution

JZrarities

Can someone (Josh?) help with attribution of this Alexander Tetradrachm?

I can't seem to find the tall 'Torch Looking Thingy' on WildWinds...and the little Footstool. (Seller's Pics)

eBay Linky

CIVITAS

Hi Jeff,

It appears to be a tetradrachm from Ambrakia (Price 664). The symbol to the left is likely the Obelisk of Apollo. The issue is dated to about 220 B.C. due to an example being found in the Patras hoard in Athens which is assumed to have been buried during the invasion by Philip V in 219 B.C. The style for the obverse matches that which is plated in Price, but the reverse looks strange. The style is quite a bit finer on the reverse of this coin than that which is plated in Price. No footstool on the plated example either, and that's usually pretty consistent at any given mint. If genuine, this is likely a very scarce coin. Likely to be infrequently published and probably not present in many collections.

JZrarities

Thanks Josh. I went through the entire Wildwinds list and the entire SNG online (615 Tets) and couldn't match the icon in the left field or the footstool. It does look like a slightly later issue for the Obverse design and seems to match well to your description. I'm not sure where to go from here...

While unable to match the icon (I did see an obelisk in one of the databases), I started trying to match something with the footstool, and ended up reading a great article from Brown University (it won some archaeological awards)

Dating Alexanders article


BTW: the weight is correct and 'feels' authentic with good fabric.

(come a long way since that first day in the shop, huh? Especially for an Air Force guy...)