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                                Sale: CNG 69, Lot: 1192. Closing Date: Jun 08, 
                                2005. ASIA MINOR. Uncertain mint. Augustus. 27 
                                BC-14 AD. Æ 28mm (21.90 gm, 12h). Bidding Closed 
                                Estimate $500 

                              ASIA MINOR. Uncertain mint. Augustus. 27 BC-14 AD. 
                              Æ 28mm (21.90 gm, 12h). Bare head left / [Spear], 
                              sella quaestoria, and fiscus, Q below sella. RPC I 
                              5409; AMNG II 29 (Pella) note; FITA 13-19 
                              (Thessalonica[?]). Near VF, brown-black patina 
                              with traces of orange in recesses. ($500)

                              From the Garth R. Drewry Collection. Ex Stack's 
                              (3-5 May 1978), lot 602.

                              The similarity of this coin's reverse to that of 
                              Aesillas led to the earlier attribution of this 
                              issue to Macedonia. Unlike the more typical club 
                              of Hercules, the presence of a spear (hasta) 
                              suggested the issuer to be an as-yet-unknown 
                              quaestor propraetore, who, unlike Aesillas, would 
                              have held the power of imperium. Based on this 
                              assumption, Grant gave the issue to M. Acilius at 
                              Thessalonica, whom he tentatively identified as 
                              Caesar's governor of Macedonia in the final year 
                              of the Dictator's life.

                              The style of the portrait is identical to a coin 
                              of the possible Cilician Colonia Iulia Veteranorum 
                              (RPC I 4082). That coin bears the additional 
                              obverse legend PRINCEPS FELIX, a title which 
                              clearly identifies the portrait as Augustus. 
                              Contrary to the statements of Imhoof-Blumer or 
                              Grant, both of whom assigned the forementioned 
                              issue and our coin to the southwestern areas of 
                              the Black Sea, to date, no specimen of our coin 
                              has turned up in sites there, as one might expect, 
                              were thst region its point of origin. The 
                              patination, typical of Syria, may lend support for 
                              locating this coin there; the lack of further 
                              conclusive evidence makes a more certain 
                              attribution impossible.








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High bid of $500, $575 including 15% buyers fee, or approximately €405, £275, C$625, A$650, on June 8, 2005.

Used by permission of CNG, www.cngcoins.com