Second Known - Unpublished but for Garrucci

Sale: CNG 78, Lot: 16. Estimate $100.  Closing Date: Wednesday, 14 May 2008.  Sold For $320. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

SOUTHERN ITALY, Uncertain. 3rd-2nd centuries BC. Æ 26mm (12.48 g, 6h). Head of Athena(?) left, wearing crested helmet / Demeter seated left, cradling long torch in left arm, pulling veil with right hand; column in background, grain ears to left, uncertain legend to right. Garrucci pl. CXIII, 4 (Lokroi Epizephyrioi), otherwise unpublished. VF, rough dark green and brown patina. Extremely rare.

The specimen in Garrucci is apparently the sole published example of this type, and must have been equally as worn, as the apparent legend to the right of the throne is not specified. His placement of this coin at Lokris is not well established; other than the similarity of the types to the Lokrian issues associated with Pyrrhos, there is nothing to substantiate this attribution. Furthermore, the helmet type depicted on Athena, which suggests a Roman influence, is very unusual for Lokris. The reverse type, in which the figure is certainly holding a long torch, is likewise atypical for Lokris. As both deities are common at many mints in Southern Italy, many of which had a high production rate during this time frame, placement at any particular location is as yet uncertain.