What Could The Blob Be On The Reverse Of This Griffin Coin?

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Author	Replies: 5 / Views: 901
Novicius Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 1168 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 12:16 pm I bought this coin as an "unknown", with the idea of adding the griffin to the animals collection. The griffin and the quadripartite square with four pellets led me to Abdera in Thrace, and a close match in Wildwinds. The description of the coin in Wildwinds is, Abdera, Thrace, c. 411-385 BC. AE10mm, 0.95g. Griffin sitting left, right foreleg raised / EΠI ..BIO(K?) and thyrsos around lined square, with a dots in each section. May -; AMNG -; Moushmov 2441 var (magistrate). The coin was from a London Ancient Coins Ltd auction on deamoneta.com, from Jun, 2012, auction 95, lot 72. A closer match was found on ACSearch, from a London Ancient Coins Ltd auction of 2013. The description of this coin is, Thrace, Abdera, c. 411-385 BC. (10mm, 0.95g, 9h). Griffin seated l., r. foreleg raised. R/ E?I (?)BIO and thyrsos around four-part raised square. May -. Unpublished in the standard references. On the top of the square on the reverse of my coin there is a clear BlO with what looks to be an O or a P in front of it, which matches up with the (?)BIO on the 2013 London ancients coin. Both descriptions identify the object to the right of the square as a thyrsos, but the object on my coin looks more like a blob than anything else! Can anyone help in properly identifying and attributing this coin? Thanks. Abdera, Thrace, c. 411-385 BC. ? Obverse: Griffin seated left with right foreleg raised. Reverse: E?I (?)BIO and "blob" around a quartered square with pellet in each quarter. Bronze? Diameter: 11 mm. Weight: 1.2 gr. Report this Post to the Staff

Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 3:08 pm Looks like a cicada to me, Jim. I know that cicadas appear on some (well, at least one) AR's from Abdera. Not sure if they are documented on AE's, though. Anyway, that's my first guess. Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 3:12 pm BTW, my second guess - also a motif that appeared on Abdera AR's - would be an astragalos. Report this Post to the Staff
Novicius Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 1168 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 8:18 pm I hadn't thought of a cicada or astragalos. I did look on ACSearch and there was one coin where a cicada was mentioned, but no image. However there were 28 Abdera griffin coins, all were indeed silver, all with Hermes standing or walking right, and 27 of them with the astragalos on the lower right on the reverse. Many of them appeared very similar to the "blob" device on the reverse of my coin. I guess it is another unpublished bronze variety. Many thanks once again, Bob. Report this Post to the Staff
Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 8:51 pm I'm still unsure whether to vote for the astragalos or cicada. Here's a comparison pic. Your image is in the center, with two different orientations. To the left are Abdera astragalos (would the plural be astragali?), and to the right Abdera cicadas. I might be leaning toward the cicada - but, to be safe, I'm going to vote for: the love child of a cicada and astragalos. Report this Post to the Staff
Novicius Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 1168 Posts	Posted 03/19/2022 9:34 pm In the centre image of the composite, with the "blob" inverted I can see that there appears to be eyes at the top and split wings at the bottom. The reorientation changes the appearance completely. Another case of not seeing the wood for the trees! I'm happy to go with the cicada rather than the astragalos, (or the love child of a cicada and astragalos ), and it gives me a creature on both sides. Thanks, Bob. Report this Post to the Staff
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