Sale: CNG 61, Lot: 987. Estimate $1000.  Closing Date: Wednesday, 25 September 2002.  Sold For $2100. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

INDIA. Taxila. Anonymous. Period of Pantaleon and Agathokles, circa 185-170 BC. AV Quarter Stater (2.34 gm). Humped bull standing left; Taxila symbol before / Fish-like symbol with pellet and crescents. Bopearachchi -; SNG ANS -; MIG 163 (Pushkalavati); BMC India pl. 35, 11. Good VF, small obverse nick, light cleaning scratches. Probably only the 5th known specimen. ($1000)

The last specimen of this type was offered in Triton IV (5 December 2000), lot 350, which realized $1,600. Taxila-Gandhara formed an independent territory from the late 3rd to the early 2nd century BC. Its two important cities, Taxila and Pushkalavati, were situated on the eastern and western sides respectively of the upper Indus river. Each city struck its own coinage, almost exclusively in copper. During the wars of succession in Baktria, Pantaleon and Agathokles were expelled from Baktria and created their own kingdom in Taxila-Gandhara, ruling from circa 185-170 BC. This anonymous coin probably represents the final issue of the local coinage attributable to Taxila during the period of these Greco-Baktrian kings, as well as one of India's earliest native gold coins.