Lot 129: Seleukid Kingdom. Seleukos II Kallinikos. 246-226 B.C. Æ. Northern Syria or Mesopotamia(?).

Seleukid Kingdom. Seleukos II Kallinikos. 246-226 B.C. Æ (10 mm, 1.22 g, 6 h). Northern Syria or Mesopotamia(?). Head of Athena right, wearing Attic helmet / ΒΑΣ[Ι] ΣΕ[ΛΕ], forepart of horned(?) horse left; in left field, monogram; in right field, EY. SC -; HGC 9, -. Unpublished and unique. Dark brown and green patina with earthen deposits. Good very fine.

This new fractional bronze type seems certainly to be a previously unknown type of Seleukos II Kallinikos, the fourth ruler of the Seleukid dynasty. It shares its obverse type and the controls found on the reverse with SC 700, an issue of Seleukos II attributed under the heading of probably Antioch (but whose find spots - at least according to the notes in SC - support an origin in northern Syria or Mesopotamia). The abbreviated legend, if it reads as described here, is also recorded for Seleukos II, and it would seem that under this king the horse and cavalryman received particular prominence as coin types, perhaps to more closely associate Seleukos and his horse with the famous steeds and exploits of both his grandfather, Seleukos I, and Alexander the Great

• Offered By: Barry P. Murphy
• Lot #: 129
• Listing #: 192557
• Closed: Tuesday, December 13, 2016 5:04:00 PM CT
• Estimate: $100