Triton XVIII, Lot: 568. Estimate $1000. Sold for $1700. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

MYSIA, Kyzikos. Circa 600-550 BC. EL Hemihekte – Twelfth Stater (7.5mm, 1.33 g). Mythological creature, with lion's head and avian body, right; to right, tunny upward / Quadripartite incuse square. Von Fritze I 22; Greenwell 159 corr. (description; same obv. die); SNG France –; SNG von Aulock 1172; cf. Boston MFA 1398 (hekte); Jameson –; Rosen –; Weber 4968. Near EF. Exceptional for issue. Very rare, only one in CoinArchives.

From the collection of the MoneyMuseum, Zurich. Ex Leu 77 (11 May 2000), lot 240.

Although this series is extremely rare, it is known in three denominations. Von Fritze attested to hektes and hemihektes, but recently a unique stater was added to the known pieces (Hurter & Liewald II 22). Interestingly, the sole example Greenwell found was of such poor quality that he misidentified the type as a crab and had the photograph oriented incorrectly (cf. Greenwell p. 122, 159, and pl. VI, 22).