GREEK. KINGS OF PERGAMON. Philetairos. 282-263 BC. Silver Tetradrachm (16.79g). Pergamon mint. Struck circa 269/8-263 BC. Diademed head right / Athena enthroned left, right hand resting on shield set at her feet, left elbow resting on small sphinx seated right; transverse spear in background, ivy leaf above knee, monogram on throne, bow to right. Westermark Group II, obv. die III; SNG BN 1603-5 (Eumenes I); SNG Hunterian 180 (same obv. die); SNG Ashmolean 750; SNG von Aulock 1354; BMC 30; Bement 1391; McClean 7672. Well centered on good metal with a sharp strike. Deep old cabinet toning with warm golden hues around the hair. aEF. This tetradrachm was struck under Philetairos, founder of the Attalid dynasty, and bears the finely engraved head of Seleukos I, highlighting Pergamon's early political ties to the Seleukid Empire. It belongs to the first phase of an emerging independent kingdom that would grow into a major Hellenistic power, an elegant and historically important piece from the dawn of Attalid rule. (P)

Estimate: AUD 2500