Perrhaiboi. Lot of 2 coins.

Triton XV, Lot: 545. Estimate $200. Sold for $2500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Lot of 2 coins.

(545.1) THESSALY, Perrhaiboi. Late 5th century BC. AR Hemidrachm (15mm, 2.88 g, 3h). Hero to r., naked, with petasos and chlamys flying behind his back, holding a band with both his hands and attempting to pass it around the head of a bull’s forepart to right; linear border / Π-E above, [P-A] below, upside down and retrograde, forepart of horse to r., all within a very shallow incuse square with rounded edges and corners. Traité IV, 572, pl. CCXCII, 20; McClean 4661, pl. 174, 27. Near VF, very light toning; the reverse die too big for the flan.

Ex CNG 79 (17 September 2008) 196, hammer $1300.


(545.2) THESSALY, Perrhaiboi. Late 5th century BC. AR Hemidrachm (15mm, 2.81 g, 11h). Hero to r., naked but for petasos and chlamys flying behind his back, holding a round object over the head of a bull’s forepart to right; border of dots / Π-[E] above, A-P below, retrograde, forepart of horse to r., all within a very shallow incuse square with rounded edges and corners. BMC p. 39, 1, pl. VIII, 7. VF, toned; flan too small for the types; surfaces granular; obv. die flaws on bull’s nose and above the petasos.

Acquired from Dr. Michael Brandt, January 1991, for DM 250.

Whatever our bull wrestler is doing here, it certainly is not pulling the ends of a band around the bull’s forehead. It may be that this stage is an earlier one in the taurokathapsia ritual, where he is preparing to throw a ball for the bull to be distracted so he can pass the leather band under his horns without any mishaps. Or perhaps what looks like a ball is the band that has been wound into this form for easier handling and he is getting ready to unfurl it so he can start his performance.