CNG 99, Lot: 533. Estimate $300. Sold for $650. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

MESOPOTAMIA, Edessa. Caracalla. AD 198-217. AR Tetradrachm (28mm, 15.51 g, 11h). Struck AD 215-217. Laureate and cuirassed bust right / Eagle standing facing, head and tail right, with wings spread, holding wreath in beak; shrine between legs. Prieur 1722/1723 (for obv. die/rev. type; “Atypical coins: Edessa Type”). Good VF, scratches/graffiti before portrait. Extremely rare.

While some of the Edessan types listed by Prieur under his “Atypical Coins” chapter are clearly barbarous (see Prieur 1724), some are die linked (Prieur 1723) or show a very close similarity in style to his official issues (Prieur 1720).