CIMMERIAN BOSPOROS. Pantikapaion. Circa 380-370 BC. Diobol (Silver, 14 mm, 1.86 g, 4 h). Head of Silenos, balding, bearded and with animal ears, to left, wearing ivy wreath.
Rev. ΠANTI Head of a ram left within shallow circular incuse. HGC 7, 73. MacDonald 53. SNG BM Black Sea -. SNG Stancomb 532. Very rare and very likely the finest known. A splendid, darkly toned piece, beautifully struck from exceptionally fine style dies. Very minor roughness
, otherwise, extremely fine.
From the Pontos Euxeinos Collection, formed in the late 1990s and early 2000s.
The name Pantikapaion is derived from the local Iranian expression 'Panti Kapa', meaning 'fish route', hinting at one of the areas greatest natural resources, the exceptionally rich fisheries of the Sea of Azov. The wealth acquired through the export of its fish and other commodities allowed Pantikapaion to hire the finest artists of the time, resulting in the production of dies of spectacular power and beauty, as with this masterpiece.
