Exceptional Philistian Owl

Triton XXII, Lot: 388. Estimate $20000. Sold for $30000. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

PHILISTIA (PALESTINE), Gaza (‘Azah). Mid 5th century-333 BC. AR Tetradrachm (22.5mm, 17.56 g, 12h). Imitating Athens. Head of Athena right, with frontal eye, wearing earring, necklace with pendants, and crested Attic helmet decorated with three olive leaves over visor and a spiral palmette on the bowl / Owl standing facing, wings folded; olive sprigs in upper corners, ‘AZ (in Phoenician) across lower field; all within incuse square. Gitler & Tal V.5T; HGC 10, 532; SNG ANS 6 = SNG Berry 701 = Van Alfen, Two, p. 65, 9 (same obv. die); Boston MFA 2203 = ACGC 207 = BMC Palestine pl. 42, 1 = Svoronos, Monnaies pl. 110, 49 (same dies); Künker 280, lot 264 (same obv. die); Mildenberg, Money, pl. 1, 5 (same dies); NAC 64, lot 1528 (same obv. die). VF, toned, slightly weak strike in center. Extremely rare, apparently the sixth known, with only five examples recorded, three of which are in museum collections (ANS, Boston, and Berlin [the latter illustrated by Mildenberg]).