Roman Holy Land, Seleucis and Pieria, Antioch, Otho, ca. 69 CE. Silver AR Tetradrachm. Obverse: Laureate head right; reverse: eagle standing facing on wreath, with wreath in beak and wings spread; palm frond to left; Greek A (date) in exergue. Prieur 102 (this coin); McAlee 315; RPC I 4200. Size: 1.1" W (2.8 cm); 14.9 grams
Otho is one of the tougher Roman emperors to find coins from, in part because he ruled for only three months, during a period of civil war. Fascinatingly, Otho did not reign long enough to ever have bronze coins produced - just gold and silver. However, in the 1500s, the Italian Giovanni Cavino created an Otho sestertius to appeal to new devotees of coin collecting traveling to Italy in search of antiquities - these collectors at the time appreciated the artistic and historical elements of the (to them modern) bronze coins rather than their authenticity!
Provenance: East Coast collection, New York Gallery, New York City, New York, USA, acquired before 2010
All items legal to buy/sell under U.S. Statute covering cultural patrimony Code 2600, CHAPTER 14, and are guaranteed to be as described or your money back.
A Certificate of Authenticity will accompany all winning bids.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to recent increases of shipments being seized by Australian & German customs (even for items with pre-UNESCO provenance),
we will no longer ship most antiquities and ancient Chinese art to Australia & Germany. For categories of items that are acceptable to ship to Australia or Germany, please contact us directly or work with your local customs brokerage firm.
Display stands not described as included/custom in the item description are for photography purposes only and will not be included with the item upon shipping.
#153179
Condition
VF.