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PHRYGIA, Apameia. Macrinus. AD 217-218. Æ Octassarion (36mm, 23.25 g, 5h). AY·T· K · M · OΠЄΛ · CЄOY MAKPCINOC CЄBA ·, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Noah and the Ark: half-length figures left of Noah and his wife within open-lidded square chest, inscribed NΩЄ, set on waves; to left, raven perched left on open lid; to left, Noah and his wife standing left upon dry land, raising hands in prayer; above, dove flying right and holding olive branch; AΠAMЄΩ/N in two lines in exergue. Waddington 5723; Hendin 921 ([4th edition] same dies as illustration). Dark green patina, earthen deposits, minor edge flaws on reverse. Good VF. Extremely rare with only three examples known – including this coin – the others being Waddington (now in the Bibliothèque Nationale), Hendin (this coin); and one in CoinArchives, our recent Triton XXV specimen (lot 648, which hammered for $94,000).
From the Kenneth S. Abramowitz Collection, purchased privately from Amphora Coins (David Hendin).
The Biblical tale of Noah and his Ark was widely known in the ancient world; indeed a form of the flood tale appears in the Akkadian Epic of Gilgamesh, circa 1800 BC, long before its inclusion in the Old Testament. However, it is still surprising that representations of of Noah and his wife, shown both inside and standing beside a box-like Ark floating on floodwaters, began to appear on coins issued by Apameia in Phrygia early in the third century AD. Also shown are the birds Noah sent out to test whether the floodwaters had receded. There is no disputing what the scene shows, as Noah is explicitly named on the Ark. It is a remarkable design, and a puzzling one: No other Biblical scenes occur on Greco-Roman coins in pre-Christian times -- why this tale and this city in central Anatolia, far from the Jewish homeland? Three explanations have been suggested: (1) Apameia is reputed to have had a large Jewish population from its Seleukid foundation in the third century BC, many of them resettled from Babylon by Antiochos III the Great; by the AD 200s, some Jews likely became civic leaders with a role in choosing coin designs. (2) An alternate name for Apameia was “Kibotos” (Strabo, xii. 8.13), the Greek word for “ark” in the sense of a chest (as in the Ark of the Covenant), possibly due to its role as a major trade center and the distinctive shipping containers it used for goods; and so the city chose as one of its blazons the most famous “ark” in history, which found its way onto coinage (explaining the boxy Ark seen on the coins) (3) A local legend arose that the true Mount Ararat, where the Ark came to rest, was in the vicinity of Apameia (although the mountain known today as Ararat is quite far from the city, on the Turkish-Armenian border). Whatever the reasons, the highly sought-after reverse type was struck for Septimius Severus, Macrinus (the present specimen and the rarest), Gordian III, Trebonianus Gallus, and Philip I, one example of which recently sold for hammer price CHF 240,000 in a Swiss auction (Leu Numismatic Auction 7, lot 1457).
The final winners of all CNG 120 lots will be determined at the live online sale that will be held on 11-12 May 2022. CNG 120 – Session Two – Greek Coinage (Part 2) through Roman Provincial Coinage will be held Wednesday afternoon, 11 May 2022 beginning at 2:00 PM ET.
Winning bids are subject to a 20% buyer's fee for bids placed on this website and 22.50% for all others.
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