Rare Ptolemaic Tetradrachm minted under Ptolemy I Soter.

[KyNumis]

Good evening everyone. I wanted to make this post for evaluations on this Ptolemy I Soter Tetradrachm. I know the type is definitely pretty rare, but since there is a substantial amount of damage it could take away from the value quite a lot, Here's NGC's photo

Apparently this type can range from 15,000USD to 35,000USD. I'm not sure what this is worth since it appears to have been chipped in antiquity, and is missing lettering.

Nomos Example (Sold 33,000 CHF)

CNG Example That Sold for 20,000$ in August

CNG Example (Sold 12,000$ On 2006)

Nomos Example (Sold 20,000$) 

[KyNumis]

Thanks for the reply! I remember seeing that example posted elsewhere and a friend tried to bid on it, I was pretty surprised it went that low, I guess it depends on the auction or buyer 

[KyNumis]

I appreciate your comment! The auction ends in a couple hours. Bidding is at 424$ and the coin is somehow rather badly misidentified by the seller

[kirispupis]

The damage makes it very difficult to price. The main features are still there though. My rough guess is a hammer between $2k-$3k, though you may see less if it's not a mainstream auction or more in a place like Stacks or Heritage.

Personally, I prefer the later issues with Athena, even though they're not nearly as rare. FWIW, the damage on my coin roughly halved its value, though made the type affordable for me. 🙂 

Ptolemy I 311-305 BCE
27.5 mm 14.6g 1h
Sv.162 (37 ex) - Cop.29 - GC.7750 var. - BMC.- - MP.6
Avers : Buste cornu et diadémé d'Alexandre le Grand sous les traits de Zeus-Ammon à droite, coiffé de la dépouille d'éléphant avec l'égide.
Revers : Athéna Promachos ou Alkidemos marchant à droite, brandissant une javeline de la main droite et tenant un bouclier de la gauche ; dans le champ à gauche, un casque corinthien, un monogramme et un aigle sur un foudre tourné à droite.
Ex CGB

[Romismatist]

I'll be honest, when dealing with really rare coins like this, I wouldn't mind a bit of damage or legends off the flan as long as it doesn't significantly detract from the main details of the coin itself. Not everyone can afford super-expensive coins, and it would still be cool to own such an interesting and historically important type. I think the portrait on the OP coin and the seated figure of Zeus on the reverse are both in decent shape, so if the coin is comparatively "affordable" it would still be an attractive buy. It's definitely a coin with a great story and some character to boot. 

[KyNumis]

.....Annnnd sold! 1,280$ hammer 

[sand]

35 minutes ago, KyNumis said:

.....Annnnd sold! 1,280$ hammer 

Did you win it?

[Ed Snible]

I was the under-bidder.  I was already watching the lot.  If the transaction is smooth, the buyer got a bargain.

The coin was offered on eBay by someone with 185 feedback, mostly for non-coin items.

The coin was described as "Drachm" and "NGC Fine" when it was a tetradrachm and NGC AU.

Edited November 28, 2022 by Ed Snible
add details

[KyNumis]

2 hours ago, Ed Snible said:

I was the under-bidder.  I was already watching the lot.  If the transaction is smooth, the buyer got a bargain.

The coin was offered on eBay by someone with 185 feedback, mostly for non-coin items.

The coin was described as "Drachm" and "NGC Fine" when it was a tetradrachm and NGC AU.

That's exactly correct. I was going to bid but it seems the price climbed too high. The seller also had a idyma drachm which was supposed to sell at heritage auctions for around 500$, But the coin ended up going for 129$.

[robinjojo]

This is definitely a rare type for Ptolemy I, who issue tetradrachms with the lion headdress of Hercules (Alexander III) a later the much more common tetradrachms with his portrait.  The prices for the elephant headdress are high for choice examples, but I lack knowledge on the price differential between the advancing Athena reverse versus the seated Zeus reverse. 

The coin your considering has the merit of have strong detail and a very nice portrait of Alexander III.  The minus side is the corrosion that has eliminated some detail on the reverse.  The straight edge seems to be just the way the flan was made - I don't think that the flan was filed or clipped.  If it was, that would sure have been noted by NGC.

Whether you buy it or not should be based on the merits of the coin and not the information on the slab.  What is the coin priced at?

My Ptolemy I lion headdress tetradrachm is very dark, no doubt to a thick layer of horn silver.  The coin looks pretty much the way it was found, I think.  Note that the weight of this coin puts it closer to the Egyptian standard that was used for Ptolemy I's portrait coins, so this may be a late minting of this type, at a branch mint.  The less sophisticated dies would suggest this.

Egypt, Ptolemy I Soter, tetradrachm,, Uncertain Cypriot mint (Kition?).

Svoronos 124  

14.7 grams