SELEUKID KINGS. Antiochos Hierax, circa 242-227 BC. Tetradrachm (Silver, 31 mm, 16.95 g, 12 h), Ilion. Diademed head of Antiochos I (?) to right. Rev. BAΣIΛEΩΣ - ANTIOXOY Apollo seated left on omphalos, holding arrow in his right hand and resting his left on grounded bow; to inner left, monogram; to outer right, monogram; in exergue, owl standing left, head facing. SC 867.2 (same dies). Extremely rare, apparently the second known example. A beautiful piece with a very attractive portrait. Struck from a somewhat worn reverse die, otherwise, about extremely fine.


This coin, which is apparently the second known example from this emission, clarifies the reading in SC. Here, the owl exergue symbol can be seen very clearly, whereas on the SC example it was obscured, leading to the tentative suggestion that the owl might have been intentionally erased. Since the present coin was struck from the reverse die in a later, more deteriorated state than the SC specimen, it is now certain that the owl was not erased, but only poorly struck on the SC coin.