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Author Topic: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?  (Read 1115 times)

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Offline ambr0zie

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Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« on: April 10, 2021, 04:01:39 pm »
Hello ladies and gentlemen.
Just won an Abydos obol with a strange shape
Described as
Troas. Abydos circa 460-430 BC.
Obol AR
8 mm, 0,59 g

Would you say that this coin was cut or this was the original flan shape?
I have never seen this shape on a coin (without being altered). The weight makes me think there is a chance this was its original condition.
The coin is not yet with me so I cannot analyze the edge.

Many thanks in advance.

Offline Altamura

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #1 on: April 11, 2021, 03:28:59 am »
There are specimens with a weight up to 0.75 g, but sometimes you have weird flan shapes, so both variants are possible.

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Altamura


Offline n.igma

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #2 on: April 11, 2021, 04:04:06 am »
Possibly part of a larger denomination circular flan that has been quartered and the pieces then struck for a smaller denomination.
All historical inquiry is contingent and provisional, and our own prejudices will in due course come under scrutiny by our successors.

Offline ambr0zie

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #3 on: April 11, 2021, 04:23:27 am »
Thank you both. I had only 1 gorgon in my collection and this is a good addition, especially since the hammer price was low.

Offline Altamura

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #4 on: April 11, 2021, 06:01:07 am »
... flan that has been quartered ...
Really?

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Altamura


Offline ambr0zie

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #5 on: April 11, 2021, 07:01:17 am »
I was also thinking that the coin is too big to be just a quarter of the 'original'.
Another collector suggested that there is the possibility that it is chipped due to crystallization.
I am still quite curious about how the coin looks in hand. It would be very interesting if the cause of the shape is poor quality control (I tend to like this type of errors)

Offline esnible

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #6 on: April 11, 2021, 11:03:35 am »
Why make the same post on two different sites?

The weights on fractions of Abydos vary a lot!

They vary so much that I was trying to figure out if they had a non-standard set of denominations, or just poor quality control.

I spent a long time trying to convince myself there were hemiobols, 1/5 drachms, trihemiobols, etc. I finally gave up and decided the standard three denominations (tetartemorion, obol, drachm) is enough.

The data set is all the examples in my collection, the ANS, SNG Copenhagen, CNG sales, and and Asia Minor Coins. I feel this is a representative sample.

Here is an example at 0.24g

I recorded the picture and weight on eBay, thinking it was a hemiobol. However, I later purchased it (Agora Auctions, May 2015, Lot 33-352 (part of)), and decided it was merely clipped.

I have no clue if your example was clipped, overstruck on a square coin, or if the mint was having a bad day.

Offline ambr0zie

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #7 on: April 11, 2021, 11:40:51 am »
Thanks again for the observation you shared, as discussed. I posted the same question on 2 different forums because I couldn't find a similar shaped coin in my research. I don't think there are many collectors studying the technical aspects of Abydos coins plus there could be people only frequenting one forum.
Also the question was posted in the same time.

Offline Altamura

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Re: Abydos obol with a strange flan or simply cut?
« Reply #8 on: April 11, 2021, 12:41:32 pm »
... The data set is all the examples in my collection, the ANS, SNG Copenhagen, CNG sales, and and Asia Minor Coins. I feel this is a representative sample. ...
This is really an interesting compilation!
But if there is a certain ratio of clipped coins included, then this may distort the picture. And if there has been a change of weight standard this is probably also not represented in your statistics.

Looking at my picture above, I would say that the coin here is clipped. If you "restore" the coin to the circle, then it would be centered quite good  :).

... plus there could be people only frequenting one forum. ...
Like me, for example  :), I only saw it here.
But it is always a good idea to give a hint that the same question has been posted elsewhere, this avoids frustration  ;).

Regards

Altamura


 

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