circa 290-240 BCE
Æ 12 mm, 1,37 g
Lysag…, magistrate. Owl standing right, head facing.
Rev. ΠΡΙΗ / [Λ]ΥΣΑΓ Trident; all within maeander pattern.
BMC -. Regling 140. SNG Copenhagen -. SNG München -. SNG von Aulock -.
Originally, Priene was a port city with two harbors. However, due to the port silting up, the site was moved since the inhabitants gradually found themselves living in a swamp. The new site was again a deep water port and was a relatively small city with four to five thousand inhabitants.
ΑΠΟΛΛOΣ (Apollos) magistrate
circa 334-320 BCE
Æ 15mm, 2,43g
Head of Athena to right, wearing crested Attic helmet /
ΠΡΙΗ ΑΠΟΛΛOΣ in two lines within maeander pattern border
Regling 116-7 var. (spelling of magistrate’s name); SNG Copenhagen -; CNG e203, 133
Construction of the new city was undertaken by the satrap Mausolos (of Mausoleum fame) in about 350 BCE. When Alexander the Great visited, he offered to pay for the Temple of Athena, which was later dedicated to him.
ΑΤΩΝ- magistrate
circa 300-140 BCE
Æ 15mm, 2,35g
Obv: Head of Athena facing
Rev: ΠPIH ΑΤΩΝ-, legend in three lines.
SNG Copenhagen 1077; Klein -; Imhoof-Blumer, KM-
The ruins of Priene today are noted for being among the best preserved in Asia Minor. Its houses in particular provide a glimpse into how an ancient Greek city functioned.
Chares, magistrate
circa 290-170 BCE
Æ 14mm, 2,77g
Obv: Helmeted head of Athena right.
Rev: ΠΡΙΗ / ΧΑΡΗΣ, Legend in 2 lines, all within maeander pattern circle.
SNG Kayhan 591 var (magistrate)
Priene was the birthplace of Bias of Priene, who was ranked as one of the seven ancient sages of Greece and was famed for his skills as a lawyer and his defense for what was right. One time, he purchased several women out of slavery, educated them at his own expense, and then sent them back to their families in Messina. Another legend tells how at an advanced age he pleaded his case at a trial, then lay his head on his grandson. The judge soon proclaimed that Bias had won the case, by which time he was already dead.
This coin is quite rare. While there are a number of issues from Priene for the Lysago.. Magistrate, only one other has sold at auction with an owl. Most other issues depict Athena with a helmet, presumably due to a connection with Athens, so an owl would be along the same line.