I was looking at your post last night, and thinking about this coin...I saw the
Bruttium connection but didn't post since I am way out of my element when I venture beyond
Parthia. But, having said that....
FYI, if you do a
search on "Rhegion" or "Samos" at
Coinarchives.com/a/, you'll see a number of other
lion's
head ancients.
I do have concerns about your coin...not based on anything definitive, since I'm not familiar with the series it is ostensibly from. And, in any event, I'm always paranoid about this stuff, so don't invest too much thought into my observations.
But the
lion's heads on most other coins from Rhegion or Samos (at least the ones I've seen online) always seem cramped on the
flan, with the outer edges of the
head often cropped at the edges. The
lion's
head on yours is much smaller in relation to the surface
area, and perfectly centered on
axis, and with that curious secondary partial curve of dots - which I've also not seen before. But, again, the fact that I've never seen it amounts to nothing since I don't collect coins from those regions and freely admit my ignorance.
The surfaces on your coin are exceptionally clean as best I can see in the photos: no scratches, corrosion, no evidence of
porosity, etc...I don't know if this should be a cause for celebration or concern, however.
I think seeking authentication/certification is prudent...I know that David
Sear offers the service (
http://davidrsear.com/certification.html), as does the Numismatic Guaranty Corporation (
http://www.ngccoin.com/ancients/index.aspx)...but their service includes encapsulation, I think.
If authentic, it's a terrific coin...congrats on owning!