Small AE from Caria - Kalymna

[M.G.M]

Hi All

I have a this small Greek coin (Better looking then the picture) about 11mm. I have with some help identified it as a coin from Caria Kalymna (Kaly on reverse under the lyre). Hower it is driving my crazy since I have been told that it is rare from a lot of different sources, but I have also been told that it is quite common coin and not worth to much. Both statements from reliable sources. Since I am really not a collector of ancient greek coins my library isn't that wast. I have tried to search internet sources for sold coins and offer coins (For now a rather long time. over a year) and I haven't found any AE for offer or sold from Caria Kalymna the only reference so far that I have found is from the BM. So I hope that anyone here could help me to sheed some light.

Thanks & Best Regards

/M.G.M

[Dapsul]

Further references are SNG Cop. 26, 609; Coll. Weber 6615 and Lindgren 3, 446. I don't think it is an exceptional rarity, but it also does not seem to be very common.

Frank

[M.G.M]

Hi Frank

Thanks for your answer. Forgive me to ask but what do you base your statement "I don't think it is an exceptional rarity" on. Is rarity mentioned in any of your references? What is making me most confused that I can't find it for sale or as sold anywhere on the internet. Normally you tend to find at least one or two spicement that has been sold as reference even if they are rare. And in this case I haven't even found one singel AE coins of any type from Caria Kalymna offered or displayed on the coin sites as Wildwinds and smiliar.

Anyway thanks again for you answer

I would also be intressted to know if any of the collectors of greek coins at this forum has an AE coin from Caria, Kalymna in their collection?

Br

/M.G.M

[CANTANATRIX]

Here are a few other apollo/lyre fractional bronzes I found as well:

[DEAD LINK REMOVED BY ADMIN]

[DEAD LINK REMOVED BY ADMIN]

In my collection I have about 6 of these although they are from different places, I would wager at least one of them is from Kalymna

Andy

[M.G.M]

Hi Andy

Thanks alot for sharing. However non of the coins that you linked to are from Kalymna. Search for Kalymna or Calymna on coinarchives and you will only get a result for the AR type (Same diplayed on wildwinds).

Would be intressted to know if you could confirm if any of yours are actually a Kalymna one. "Kaly" should be written under the lyre the on the reverse and the obverse has a helmeted bust facing.

Thanks again

/M.G.M

[Dapsul]

Hi M.G.M.,

I supposed this coin not to be very rare because I found it in at least four collections. About its occurence at the market I'm not well informed.

Best - Frank

[CANTANATRIX]

Hi Andy

Thanks alot for sharing. However non of the coins that you linked to are from Kalymna. Search for Kalymna or Calymna on coinarchives and you will only get a result for the AR type (Same diplayed on wildwinds).

Would be intressted to know if you could confirm if any of yours are actually a Kalymna one. "Kaly" should be written under the lyre the on the reverse and the obverse has a helmeted bust facing.

Thanks again

/M.G.M

Hi yes I know they are not from Kalymna I was referencing them as other examples of fractional bronze coinage featuring apollo/lyre as they can actually be quite hard to attribute if legends or lettering is either obscured or not visibleand are very similar to your kalymnian coin

One of my apollo/lyre fractional bronzes one of them has the attic-type helemted bust as on your coin adn teh other coinage of Kalymna (though mine faces right as opposed to left) and although the space under the lyre is nearly entirely off-struck and not visible there appears to be some sort of legend that appears across the lyre although whether that is a result of a double-strike or something I am not certain. The coin itself is rather grainy and it's difficult to tell.

[M.G.M]

Hi again

Thanks again to both of you. I think i found some Kalymna coins on the BM website a while ago but I seem to have lost the link. Maybee that could have confirmed that least one of your coins was a Kalymna one. As I could remember there wasn't to many variaties.

Best Regards

/M.G.M

[Howard Cole]

It is not unusual to not find auction prices realized or pricing information on the Internet for many coins, especially common bronze ones.  The reason for this is that these coins are almost never sold individually but in large lots by auction houses, if at all. 

I have searched for information about small Greek bronze coins I own on wildwinds and coinarchives with no luck, and usually have to turn to the American Numismatic Society's web site.  They have almost their whole collection listed there (also almost with no pictures) with a great search engine.  The ANS web site has given me many leads in identifying many many bronze and very small silver coins.  By the number of coins listed in the ANS collection, I can get a fairly good idea of how rare a coin might be (large might because collections are usually selective, even the huge one ANS has).

I usually don't worry about the value of the coin once it is identified, but I do keep my eyes open for examples that do come on the market and what they sell for.   I know that one day I will most likely have to sell my collection, which I hope is a long ways off.