B R I T I S H M U S E O M . , DEPAR TMENT O F M DAL C O IN S AND E S. A G UI D E TO THE PRINCIPAL GOLD AND SILVER IN OF THE AN E T CO S CI N S, M F R C RC . C . 700 TO A 1 . B D . O I . AY H EA D D. R C L V . P H B A . , , ASSISTANT KEEPE R O F CO INS. TH I R D E D I TI O N. LO NDO N Y O RDER OF THE TRU TEE PRINTED B S S. LO NGMANS Co. P er s e r Row B . UAR ITCH 1 5 P cc , at no t ; Q , , i adilly ; St reet C v A ASHER Co . 1 3 e r e G r e a nd a t er . , , B dfo d , o nt a d n , B lin ; 5 d 5 9 TRUB NER Co . 7 a n e , , Ludgat Hill ; C RO LLIN FEUAR DENT 1 9 s r ree 4 P ce v s Pa r s . , , Bloom bu y St t, , la Lou oi , i . D ’ E E ITO R S PREFAC . ' THE chief value of Greek coins lies in their being a s m original works of art, not copies , are ost of the extant r f r sculptu es in the ound , and in their ecording the suc ces sive c r a r t phases and lo al va ieties of Greek , in which l s m m s s c s respect no other c a s of onu ent , ulptures , bronze , e - fic tile s s m c a n m m t rra cottas , va e , or ge s , co pete with the . F r om the seventh c entury before the Chris tian era down r r m r m s wa ds , and f o the fa thest east to the extre e we t of r d s a r e the ancient civilised wo l , gold and silver coin still m s s extant , in any case as uninjured as when they fir t left t es h r the dies . The devices or yp whic they bea , if not by e n r e l adi g artists , certainly faithfully rep esent the styl of the s culpture and eve n of the painting of the p e riods to which they belong . Thus in no other branch of Greek monuments can the s tudent so re adily and so thoroughly w m trace the gro th , the aturity, and the decay of the r plastic art as on coins chronologically a ranged . For the study of mythology they p resent th e local con c eption s of the gods and heroes worshipped in the Gree k m r d l . wo l , with their attributes and sy bo s The historian will find a galle ry of portraits of sover e ign s almost com lete r m A s s l p f o lexander to Augu tu , as wel as evidences of the history and of the political revolutions of innumerable autonomous states and citie s in these all but imperishable a r records . The student of pal eog aphy will find on coins m e a s exa ples of various ancient alphab ts , such Lycian and r P oe I r n & c . r Cyp ian , h nician , Greek , Latin , be ia , , in va ious m s l m . m tages of deve op ent The etrologist, by co paring ’ F EDITOR S PRE ACE . ff r l the weights of coins of di e ent ocalities and periods , ma y gain an insight into the various systems of ancient me its ff s d u s trology in di erent tan ards , and obtain a j t e v m view of the r lative alues of the precious etals , and of r f r R m r the g eat lines o t ade in the Greek and o an wo ld . For p ractical purposes th e medallist and a r t workman will fin d this series the most profitable a s well as the e s l v saf t guide . The artist wi l not fail to percei e the sug e s tiv e l s n m g va ue of de ig s which , on however s all a scale , n a re esse tiall y large in treatment . The fronts of the two upright cases A and B placed back to back in the centre of the First Coin Room contain electrotypes of the fines t ancient coins in the National h m ff Collection , arranged in suc a anner as to a ord a synoptical view at once historical and geogr aphical of the r r m gold and silve coinage of the ancient world , f o the c B . C. 7 0 0 invention of the art of oining , about , down to the Christian era . Case A is d ivided ver tica lly into four historical compart m n m s B . m um ent , and case into three These co part ents , r I II l rur e . be d to V , contain the principa coins c ent during the following periods : — — h Per . r i d Archa ic Ar t e t e s C rc B . C. 7 00 480 Pe o I. i a o f , nding with ian s war . — — r n r F Ar 480 40 0 . Per i d o T a siti na l a nd Ea l ine t II. C rc B . C . i a o f o y , to h s re c t he end of t e Ath enian up ma y . — — F A e the r P e riod o ines t Ar t. 4 336 . II C rc B . C . 0 0 I . i a f g of Spa tan and Th eban s up remaci es . — — r A e of e er 2 . Peri d o La te F ine Art. C rc B . C . 336 80 IV . i a o f g Al xand D and the iado c hi . — — C rc 2 80 1 90 . Per i d o the Decline o Ar t. A e of the V . i a o f f g E &c . pigoni , — Per i d o c ntinued Decline o Ar t. A e of the rc B . C. 1 90 VI. Ci a o f o f g Attalids . — f — r . A e o r I C rc 1 0 0 1 . Per iod o la te Dec line o A t VI . i a f f g Mith i dat es the Gr e at and of Roman dominion . Each of the above seven compartments i s d ivided ta ll horizon y into three geographical sections , the upper one ’ EDITOR S PREF ACE . P oen r (A) containing the coins of Asia Minor, h icia , Sy ia , m B r &c . , and Egypt ; the iddle one ( ) those of Northe n P th e s and Central Greece , the eloponnesus , and island ZE e a n I of the g ; and the lowest (C) those of taly , Sicily , th e r M e s southern sho es of the editerranean , and W tern u E rope . Each of the seven his torical compartments thus offers in its three geogr aphic al sections a complete view of the coins current throughout the civilised world during that r c c l m r s pa ti ular entury or period , the who e for ing a se ie of ' s v historically succe si e tableaux . The individual specimens are separ ately labelled and m r the w -on e s th e m er nu be ed in each of t enty section , nu b s o ui f referring to the foll wing G de , where su ficient de s cri ti n p o s and explanations are given . REG NALD STUART P LE I OO , Kee er o i s p f Co n . LIST OF AB B REVIATIONS AND EXPLANATIONS OF TERMS . A7 a ura m old E L electrum a n a llo of old a nd s l ZR , (g ) ; , , y g i ver ; , a rgentum (s ilver) . f bv. o verse th e a ce of a n O co . b , i h b reverse t e a c . R ev. , k T e the ri c a l evic e u on th e ob verse or re er yp , p n ip d p v se . F ield th e a re a b e e e n the t e a nd the circ mfere , tw yp u n ce . Ev. exer ue the lo e r or on of the d g , w p ti are a of a coin s eparate from th e re s t b a s ra h li e y t ig t n . S mbol a n a cc ess or device in th e fi eld or e e r y , y x g ue . B - O u the a es the me a s A7 a nd N. pl t t l EL a re a lo ne i nd ic ated ; a ll the rest a re ZR . AUTH R’S PREFA E O C .