merveil

That's a beautiful coin, I love the sharp portrait! (That said, I'm glad mine is less attractive as otherwise I wouldn't be able to afford it 😉 ) Maybe the legend was meant to be MEGALOU? I imagine that many mint workers were illiterate back then so they could have confused a letter or two.

Wow, thank you all for a warm welcome and sharing your knowledge! I had spent quite some time researching this tet but that's no match for years of experience. Initially I was looking for a more common coin but I managed to get this beauty for under 200 USD (including all fees and shipping). I couldn't say no to that 🙂 I find it quite alluring that Parthian coins can be so difficult to attribute. I like the mystery, I like the challenge but I also like that it clashes with the human instinct to put everything into a definitive category and "own" it. All the question marks help me see past it and appreciate this coin as a fascinating historical and artistic object that I'm temporarily a custodian for. Well, that's the first Parthian coin in my house but I don't think it will be the last!

Hi! I recently bought my first Parthian coin. And I started with a rather rare beast - a 30.2 tetradrachm pictured below: Since I'm new to this time period, I have a lot of questions on my mind - here are some of them: 1. I bought the coin from a legit auction house but they don't handle many Parthian pieces. If you see any red flags regarding its authenticity, I'd love to hear about them! 2. I read somewhere that monograms on tets from that period may have referred to the provincial governor at the time. Does the "KR" monogram on this coin have known meaning or is it one of many Parthian mysteries? 3. While researching the coin, I saw 2 other type 30 tetradrachms with a similar kind of graffiti in the field. I wonder of it could be, perhaps, some accounting system from the period? Or maybe the person who found a hoard of them was bored and started doodling 🙂 4. Finally, which attribution do you find most convincing? Do you think it's an unknown king or an alternative portrait for one of the monarchs known by name? I'm looking forward to your answers and any comments you want to make. Thank you in advance for taking the time!