Calabria, Tarentum.
Calabria, Tarentum.
AR Stater, , 344-340 BC, 9.91g (20mm, 6h).
Horseman riding right, helmeted and with a belt around his waist, holding shield and spear with left hand. Aspirate below / nude riding l. on dolphin with skyphos in right hand, TAPAΣ to r. and waves below.
Pedigree: Ex N. B. Hunt, II Sotheby's 21 June 1990, lot 180; Ex Nomos 125 lot 2
References: Fischer-Bossert 671e (this coin), HN III 878, SNG ANS 935, SNG Loyd 171, Vlasto 448
Grade: Well struck, with very slight wear on high points. Some slight traces of unidentifiable undertype on both faces and minor overall surface roughness. Spectacular reverse with sharp details on face, hair, and Aspirate. Fine style. Mint State.
gk1753
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After the earliest coins of Tarentum were struck, a long series continued which featured a horseman on the obverse and young dolphin rider on the reverse. The dolphin rider was to symbolize the foundation myth of the city in which Taras, the son of Poseidon, was involved in a ship wreck and was in the process of drowning. Dramatically, he was saved by a dolphin and brought safely to shore. Tarentum was named for the alleged spot where he was deposited on shore. This coin is from the Sotheby's Nelson Bunker Hunt sale of 1990, a massive series of auctions that were held to liquidate the assets of the famous brothers who single-handedly destroyed the silver market on March 27, 1980 when they unsuccessfully attempted to corner the market.