Sale: Nomos 3 & 4, Lot: 1219. Estimate CHF225.  Closing Date: Monday, 9 May 2011.  Sold For CHF1000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

THESSALY, Orthe. Mid 4th century BC. Chalkous (Bronze, 15mm, 3.03 g 5). Head of Athena to right, wearing an Attic helmet, with raised earflap and ornamented with a serpent and a tendril, pendant earring and necklace. Rev. Ο - Ρ / Θ - Ι Trident, upright, within olive wreath. Rogers 423 ff. and Traité IV 595 var. (legend not retrograde). Rare. A clear coin with a splendid obverse. Dark patina. Reverse weakly struck, otherwise, extremely fine.

This is clearly the first issue of Orthe: it is notable that it is quite similar to the later silver coinage of Pharsalos and bears a head of Athena in an Attic helmet. The following issues of Orthe copy the head of Athena on Alexander’s gold coins from Macedonian mints and, thus, date to the last quarter of the 4th century, at the earliest.