an interesting discussion which i am enjoying immensely, and the coins shown are outstanding, especially that Carian
tetradrachm!
the coin which jumped into my mind when i first read this was a small bronze of
Carthage from my
collection. i'm sure you all know the
type;
Tanit left on the
obverse and a
horse standing right on the
reverse, but with a
palm tree behind (my own example is too low grade to show here). this is not a
rare coin or a particularly unusual depiction (there are coins from
Ephesus, for example, with the same device). but while the artistic
style of the Carthaginian piece is not up to that of the other coins shown here, it does explore the same use of perspective, the
horse being nearly the same size as the tree but the overall effect giving a wonderful depth of
field.
a much more dramatic effect (imo) was achieved on a coin of Velia, circa early 4th century BC. it is not only the use of perspective but the way that perspective drove the composition which fascinates me.
below are two examples from
CNG, the first of the more typical
reverse scene, with the
lion attacking a stag. this is the far more common
type.
the second shows the same event, more or less, but with the
lion in the foreground and almost completely
(but not quite) blocking the stag from view. it is this teasing glimpse of the stag which provides the depth here, in a way which takes the imagery from a two-dimensional representation and opens it up into a fully blown scene from nature! the coin becomes a window rather than a canvas, and we are left to wonder at the inspiration of the engraver.
very impressive!
~
Peter