CNG 85, Lot: 565. Estimate $300. Sold for $450. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

EARLY SKYTHIANS. Uncertain. 1st century AD. AR Drachm (18mm, 4.03 g). Beardless male head left, wearing elaborate coiffure / Blank. Cf. CNG 82, 972, CNG E-164, 104, and E-165, 106 (all refs for type); otherwise unpublished. VF, toned, a few light cleaning scratches on reverse.

This coin’s portrait has some stylistic affinities with those of the Dahae, a nomadic group who migrated throughout the region. Similar coins have been found in the region of Baluchestan, an area on Parthia’s eastern borders, in context with coins of the Paratarajas.