Sale: Triton IX, Lot: 276. Estimate $300.  Closing Date: Monday, 9 January 2006.  Sold For $180. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

BOIOTIA, Tanagra. Early-mid 4th century BC. Lot of two AR Obols. Both coins: Boiotian shield / Forepart of horse right; T above, A before, both turned slightly clockwise; all within incuse flat circle. Head, Boeotia p. 52; SNG Cop. 230; SNG Manchester 918; SNG Stockholm 1393; G. Hirsch XLVI (9 December 1965), lot 1604. Scarce. Varieties: (a) 0.85 g. Same dies as Manchester coin // (b) 0.72 g. Both coins VF. Two (2) coins in lot. ($300)

These particular reverses have a couple of common features: an early looking, oval type, relatively high relief shield and, for the reverses, a very short, or practically non-existant, horse body. Apparently all that the engravers were interested in portraying was the horse's head, its neck and its two front legs. As far as dating is concerned, (a) seems to be of earlier style. However, the concavity of the field on the reverse is only apparent in (b), the reverse field of (a) being almost completely flat.