Very Rare Denomination

448, Lot: 24. Estimate $100. Sold for $160. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

SICILY, Leontini. Circa 476-466 BC. AR Hemiobol (9.5mm, 0.33 g, 5h). Facing lion scalp / Barley grain. Cf. Boehringer, Münzgeschichte 19 (obol); cf. HGC 2, 687 (obol); CNG E-327, lot 464; Roma IV, lot 1078 corr. (incorrect references). Find patina, edge chip. VF. Very rare denomination, unpublished in the standard references.

In his study of the coinage of Leontini, Boehringer notes a barbarous copy (note 30 and pl. 10, B) of the standard obol (pl. 10, 19). He bases his distinction between the official and barbarous issues based on style, but it is notable that the ‘barbarous’ coin he cites weighs 0.33 g. One wonders whether the barbarous style is not merely the result of the skill, or lack thereof, of the engraver, and that this represents the official hemiobol for this issue. In any event, the present coin, along with the CNG E-327 and the Roma IV pieces, are of a higher quality of style that is commensurate with the other official coins of the early issues of Leontini.