Benefactor kirispupis Posted November 3, 2022 · Benefactor Benefactor Share Posted November 3, 2022 Hello everyone, I'm nearly finished with a collection that tells a story. As you know, I collect via stories where I identify coins that tell it and then pursue them. Below are three coins from the story. For some fun, which one am I telling? I've deliberately not included attribution, or it would be too easy. 🙂 Hint: Be specific 12 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shanxi Posted November 3, 2022 · Supporter Share Posted November 3, 2022 A wild guess: The march of the 10000 ? 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor kirispupis Posted November 3, 2022 · Benefactor Author Benefactor Share Posted November 3, 2022 23 minutes ago, shanxi said: A wild guess: The march of the 10000 ? That's the exact one! I have one more coin I'm after, then I'll post all twelve coins I have for the story. 🙂 6 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Deinomenid Posted November 4, 2022 · Supporter Share Posted November 4, 2022 Ok, This is bad of me as I literally finished rereading it (and its incredibly annoying ending) last night but I still don't get the clues. Could you help me please? I'm too myopically Western Greek in my coins... Athens tet something to do with his exile from there? Thalatta! Thalatta! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor kirispupis Posted November 4, 2022 · Benefactor Author Benefactor Share Posted November 4, 2022 1 hour ago, Deinomenid said: Ok, This is bad of me as I literally finished rereading it (and its incredibly annoying ending) last night but I still don't get the clues. Could you help me please? I'm too myopically Western Greek in my coins... Tissaphernes - was the 10,000's chief enemy after the Battle of Cunaxa. He was also instrumental during the battle. Syennesis - allowed Cyrus' army into Cilicia, though attempted to stay friendly to both sides Athens - birthplace of Xenophon 2 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helvius Pertinax Posted November 6, 2022 · Member Share Posted November 6, 2022 What an amazing collection theme! There's so many coins that can be linked to the Story, from all over the greek and Persian world, one could surely make a giant collection of coins relating to the Story and its characters. You did a great job picking out some of the coins linked more directly to the story, nice Owl in particular 😍 You say you have twelve coins for the story, I'm curious what the other nine are! Perhaps a Siglos from Artaxerxes II's time, some coins from the regions the 10.000 traveled through like Kolchis or Sinope? I'm looking forward to your full post! An Anabasis-themed collection has been my plan for a collection too, for a long time. Unfortunately due to some difficulties, I was only able to study the time period and the related coins so far and haven't bought a coin in over 8 months 😅 Now that my situation has gotten better, I have a nice goal in an auction in the near future, a type minted by one of the main characters, Tissaphernes - I see yours is also a really nice one, the details on the Soldier are great! I'm going for a portrait piece, I really hope I'll be able to win that one! Also, I gotta take a moment to compliment your photography, these pictures look amazing! Good luck with completing the collection 😁 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor kirispupis Posted November 6, 2022 · Benefactor Author Benefactor Share Posted November 6, 2022 1 hour ago, Helvius Pertinax said: You say you have twelve coins for the story, I'm curious what the other nine are! Perhaps a Siglos from Artaxerxes II's time, some coins from the regions the 10.000 traveled through like Kolchis or Sinope? I'm looking forward to your full post! I won't post the images here just yet, as one of the coins is on its way, but the following are what I have. Ataxerxes II stater Athens tet (above) Gamerses bronze Gongylos (early type of Pergamon) Kebren (uncertain satrap, but given the geography they likely dealt with him) Kotys I bronze Orontas bronze Syennesis stater Tiribazos stater Tissaphernes bronze I originally stated 11, but I accidentally counted Gongylos and Pergamon, when the types are the same. The last coin I'm aiming for is a Pharnabazos. I'll probably pick up one of the obols, since the staters are pricy. Technically, I could make it more interesting by adding coins from the cities they passed through and came from, but I chose to limit it to Athens (because I already had one) and Pergamon. I'm already collecting cities for the Philip II, Alexander III, and the Era of the Diadochi collection and this would have been too much. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ryro Posted November 7, 2022 · Supporter Share Posted November 7, 2022 Wonderful spread my friend! We may never see a more historically important and captivating coin for this period than @AncientJoe has. I would love to see his gold melted statue emergency coin again. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AncientJoe Posted November 8, 2022 · Member Share Posted November 8, 2022 On 11/6/2022 at 6:25 PM, Ryro said: Wonderful spread my friend! We may never see a more historically important and captivating coin for this period than @AncientJoe has. I would love to see his gold melted statue emergency coin again. Thanks; I can't miss an opportunity to share when summoned! ATTICA. Athens. AV Diobol (1.43 gms), ca. 407/6 B.C. Svoronos-pl. 15#7. Head of Athena facing right wearing crested Attic helmet adorned with palmette and olive leaves; Reverse: Two owls standing confronted, olive branch between, ethnic in exergue. Ex. John Whitney Walter Collection Athens was a prolific producer of silver coinage, minting millions of owl tetradrachms. Gold, however, was much scarcer in the region and Athens only minted gold coinage when in severe crisis. This gold diobol comes from the final years of the Peloponnesian War and is one of the most important and rarest Greek coins. Athens faced heavy losses against Sparta. Near the end of the war, they blocked Athens from accessing its silver mines, resulting in an economic emergency. After four years of being starved out, the need for funds became so dire, the authorities ordered the melting of seven of the eight massive gold statues of Nike which were standing around the Parthenon on the Acropolis. These statues were symbols of the city’s great economic reserves making this a true moment of desperation for Athens. The gold from these statues was minted into coins and used to construct a new fleet of ships to attempt a naval retaliation. Because of their value, to protect against forgeries, the dies used to strike the coins were stored in the Parthenon treasury in an alabaster box. Further indicating the importance of their minting, the historical context of these gold coins is exceptionally well documented by the playwright Aristophanes and by the Athenian treasury records. Unfortunately, even with the influx of funds, Athens was ultimately defeated at sea and surrendered to the Spartan general Lysander. While many thousands of coins were minted with the volume of gold from the statues, only a very small number survive today. This coin is one of only two diobols in private hands with the four others residing in museums. Other denominations are also known but exist in similar numbers, with only one or two examples of each available to private collectors. 9 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helvius Pertinax Posted December 8, 2022 · Member Share Posted December 8, 2022 It might be weird reacting to a post thats over a month old, but now I finally have something to contribute, so why not 😅 I've been after this specific type for some time, due to its connection to the story of the 10.000. It shows the man who was Cyrus' biggest rival, after the King if course, who fought the 10.000 in battle, negotiated with their leaders and chased them through the empire. I find the story of the 10.000 special in many aspects. Not only was it written by one of its main characters, it also provides an amazing view into the areas they crossed a good 2400 years ago. The dangers of crossing enemy territory, the way the soldiers got their food, what food they could hunt in which regions, the extreme heat of Syria and the extreme cold of Kolchis, Xenophon does a wonderful job getting us involved in the story and showing us what the life of a soldier looked like! 7 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor KenDorney Posted December 8, 2022 · Benefactor Benefactor Share Posted December 8, 2022 5 hours ago, Helvius Pertinax said: It might be weird reacting to a post thats over a month old, but now I finally have something to contribute, so why not 😅 You outbid me on that one! Great coin and nice catch! 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Helvius Pertinax Posted December 8, 2022 · Member Share Posted December 8, 2022 36 minutes ago, KenDorney said: You outbid me on that one! Great coin and nice catch! Thanks a lot for not going higher then 😂 My poor student budget would not have been able to keep up! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Benefactor kirispupis Posted December 8, 2022 · Benefactor Author Benefactor Share Posted December 8, 2022 (edited) 7 hours ago, Helvius Pertinax said: It might be weird reacting to a post thats over a month old, but now I finally have something to contribute, so why not 😅 I've been after this specific type for some time, due to its connection to the story of the 10.000. It shows the man who was Cyrus' biggest rival, after the King if course, who fought the 10.000 in battle, negotiated with their leaders and chased them through the empire. I find the story of the 10.000 special in many aspects. Not only was it written by one of its main characters, it also provides an amazing view into the areas they crossed a good 2400 years ago. The dangers of crossing enemy territory, the way the soldiers got their food, what food they could hunt in which regions, the extreme heat of Syria and the extreme cold of Kolchis, Xenophon does a wonderful job getting us involved in the story and showing us what the life of a soldier looked like! Edit: just realized I already posted my Tissaphernes above. Adding my Tiribazos, which I purchased after writing the post. 🙂 Cilicia, Soloi Tiribazos, satrap. AR Stater 9.92g, 21mm, 6h Circa 385-380 BCE Bearded head of Herakles to right, wearing lion skin around neck Bearded head of satrap to right, wearing bashlyk; ΣΟΛEΩ[N] around SNG BnF 159; Traité II, 566; SNG Levante - Ex Roma Edited December 8, 2022 by kirispupis 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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