CNG 90, Lot: 445. Estimate $300. Sold for $360. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

KINGS of MACEDON. temp. Alexander III – Philip III. Circa 324/3-320 BC. AR Tetradrachm (24mm, 16.28 g, 1h). In the name of Alexander III. Local imitation of Arados mint issue. Head of Herakles right, wearing lion skin / Zeus Aëtophoros seated left; kerykeion in left field. For prototype, cf. Price 3332 and Duyrat group IV, series 11. VF, bright surfaces.

This local imitation is a very close copy of the prototype issue from Arados. Except for the absence of the civic monogram below the throne, the identification of the coin as an imitation is only betrayed by subtle elements. In the legend, the N of Alexander’s name is retrograde, and in the royal title, the B appears as a malformed 8, the A is in the form of a Δ, and the ending Σ appears as a line above a dot. Stylistically, two elements are anomalous: the ear of Herakles has been transformed into a lock of hair, and the top of the kerykeion (which is always well formed in the official issues) appears as two dots surmounting an oval. Finally, the weight is light for the period.