ACHAIA. Pellene. Circa 340-320 BC. Hemidrachm (Silver, 15 mm, 2.92 g, 3 h). Laureate head of Apollo to right; behind, ΠE; below chin, Λ. Rev. ΠEΛ within laurel wreath. BCD Peloponnesos 586-89. SNG Copenhagen 210. Beautifully toned and with an illustrious pedigree dating back to the first half of the 18th century. The obverse struck somewhat off center, otherwise, very fine.


Apostolo Zeno (1668-1750) was a Venetian librettist and humanist who worked as poet laureate in Vienna in 1715-1729, where he also curated the imperial coin collection of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles VI (1685-1740). His collection focused on Roman Imperial coins, but it also included a substantial group of Greek issues.