Thrace, Odrysai
Circa 3rd century BCE
AE 18mm 3.10g
Obv: head of Herakles right, wearing lion’s skin headdress
Rev: ΟΔΡΟΣ; bull standing left on club
SNG BM Black Sea 333A-B; cf. BMC Thrace p. 140, 1; cf. Traité II.4, p. 869, 1322-3
This specific type isn’t rare, but it took me some time to finally acquire one. Now I can just imagine my great-ancestors taking the cart for a spin one day, only to to get a flat and have to use this coin and many of its friends for a tow. However, a reading of Babelon has indicated this coinage likely referred to a city referenced by Etienne of Byzantion, and not for the tribe in general. Still, it’s possible that my ancestors visited the town on a day trip, stopped at a fast-mutton joint where they received this coin as change, and ran over a curb in the parking lot – hence the flat.