399, Lot: 417. Estimate $150. Sold for $95. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

EGYPT, Alexandria. Hadrian. AD 117-138. Æ Drachm (32mm, 22.81 g, 12h). Dated RY 17 (AD 132/133). Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Draped bust of Serapis right, wearing calathus, supported on wings of eagle standing facing, head left; L IZ (date) across upper field, branch or palm frond to right. Köln 1083; Dattari (Savio) 1822; K&G 32.550; Emmett 1026.17. Fine, dark green patina with earthen highlights/deposits on the reverse, two spots of bare metal on the edge, a number of intentional countermarks/cuts on the obverse beneath the patina.

While this is an interesting reverse type, the obverse is of even more interest. This cataloguer can never recall seeing a countermarked Alexandrian bronze in almost 40 years of collecting, studying, and cataloging the series. These marks appear to be more than just a series of random cuts, but rather may have conveyed some message or meaning to their intended audience.