Enigmatic Issue

238, Lot: 5. Estimate $300. Sold for $575. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

CELTIC, Northern Gaul. Uncertain tribe. Circa 58-50 BC. AV 1/4 Stater (10mm, 1.46 g). Plain bulge / Rooted tree (trophy?) flanked by bars; rosette and pellets-in-annulets above, three connected pellets-in-annulets and bent line below. D&T 250; cf. Scheers 118. Good VF. Very rare.

This coin belongs to a series that is well deserving of serious research. Both English and French scholars have contributed to the publication of numerous varieties, but one really needs a full synthesis of current knowledge. The issuing tribe is uncertain, but the Ambiani, Morini, Cantiaci, and Trinovantes have all been postulated. The reverse type is variously described as a Celtic tree or a Roman trophy, and the numerous obverse symbols (line of pellets, pellet-in-ring, eye, floret, digamma, various letters and monograms) have not been properly categorized.