Triton XV, Lot: 301. Estimate $1500. Sold for $5500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

THESSALY, Larissa. Mid to late 4th century BC. AR Stater (23mm, 12.22 g, 12h). Head of the nymph Larissa three-quarter facing l., wearing plain necklace and drop pendant earring, her hair held by an ampyx; border of dots / ΛΑΡΙ above, [ΣΑΙΩΝ] below, bridled horse trotting r., tail upright and looped. See UBS 73 (5 September 2007) 319; NAC 39 (16 May 2007) 36; Triton IX (10 January 2006) 865, all from the same dies as this coin. See also Egger XXXIX (15 January 1912) 269 = Sotheby’s 13 June 1911, 165 = Sotheby’s 24 February 1904, 47 for a coin of the same style, probably from the same hand. VF, lightly toned and well centred but the ears of the horse and the exergue letters are off the flan; the obverse has been tooled to remove the die rust marks from the eye area, clearly visible on the above three specimens that share dies with this coin; one of the two rare early issues, with the “prototype master” being responsible for the obverse die; cleaning scratches and graffito below the horse.

Ex NFA XXV (29 November 1990) 97, hammer $4500.

At the time this coin was acquired at the NFA auction there were no other specimens to compare and see that the die rust was removed by tooling. A closer look, however, will reveal the areas from where the die rust marks were removed, the colour and metal surfaces being different.