★ Possibly the Fourth Known ★

Macedon, Akanthos AR Tetradrachm. Circa 500-480 BC. Bull collapsing to left, head raised, attacked and mauled by lion upon his back to right; reverted lotus flower on exergual line / Quadripartite incuse square. Apparently unpublished in the standard references; NGSA 9, 34; CNG 84, 204; G&M 138, 1200. 16.36g, 24mm.

Extremely Fine. Extremely Rare; possibly only the fourth known example.

This exceedingly rare coin is one of the earliest tetradrachms from Akanthos, recognisable by the thick flan. This particular variety with the lotus flower on the exergual line is notable not only for its rarity, not being published in any of the standard reference works, but also for demonstrating the difference between these early coins and the later more common types. The lotus here is naturalistic and encroaches onto the field of the main design, the style then develops into the highly stylised floral element which is firmly within the boundaries of the exergue seen on later coins.