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ROMAN COINS - Commodus - MEDALLION ALEXANDER IN TROY

Currency:USD Category:Coins & Paper Money Start Price:4,500.00 USD Estimated At:4,500.00 - 1,000,000.00 USD
ROMAN COINS - Commodus - MEDALLION ALEXANDER IN TROY
Abydos, Troas. Commodus as Caesar, AE37 Medallion (27.90 g), 166-177 AD. <SPAN STYLE=`FONT-SIZE:10.0PT;FONT-FAMILY:SYMBOL;COLOR:#333333`>AUK AIL AURH - KOMODOS GER</SPAN>, laureate draped bust to right / <SPAN STYLE=`FONT-SIZE:10.0PT;FONT-FAMILY:SYMBOL;COLOR:#333333`>EPI AR</SPAN>C<span style=`font-size:10.0pt;font-family:Symbol;color:#333333`> AILZWILUO / ABUDHN</span>, Alexander the great standing right in a galley, spear in hand, turning left to urge his men onward; a trumpeter stands within a tower in the background, while the figure of Athena decorates the akrostolion of Alexander`s galley. Seemingly unpublished and of the highest rarity, the reverse type is known used at Abydos on two issues of Septimius Severus, one in the Bibliothèque Nationale in Paris, the other sold in Triton V, lot 1716. This important reverse type is discussed in I Vecchi, "Alexander the Great at Troy," Minerva 12/4 (July/August 2001), p. 56 in relation to the CNG coin mentioned above. The type recalls Alexander the Great`s landing at Troy to begin his campaign against the Persians. As he crossed the Hellespont, Alexander carried with him a copy of Homer`s Iliad and prayed to the gods to become a new Achilles who would avenge the invasion of Greece by the Persians in 480 BC. Ex Rauch 75, 184; Gorny & Mosch 146, 360, since then professionally conserved.

VF overall, dark brown patina.