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Drachm Kapostal Type
| Issuer | Uncertain Eastern European Celts |
|---|---|
| Year | 200 BC - 1 BC |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Drachm |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Highly stylised, Celticised bearded male head facing right, rendered in the abstract La Tène artistic tradition. The hair is depicted as bold flowing curvilinear lines and pellet-tipped strands radiating around the face. Facial features are schematically rendered, with a prominent nose and beard indicated by sweeping relief lines. A dotted border or pellet ornaments frame portions of the periphery. The overall treatment reflects the progressive abstraction characteristic of late Celtic coinage derived from Macedonian prototype types. |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Stylised equestrian figure proceeding to the left, depicting a helmeted rider mounted on a horse, the helmet distinguished by an elongated flowing crest. The horse's body is rendered in a simplified but dynamic form, with legs suggested by linear projections terminating in pellets. Multiple isolated pellets and small globular elements are scattered throughout the field, serving as decorative or symbolic fillers characteristic of Celtic coinage of the Kapostal series. The entire composition displays the advanced abstraction typical of Eastern Celtic die-cutters working in the Pannonian region. |
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| Additional information |
The Kapostal type takes its name from the Hungarian findspot region, and its attribution to "uncertain Eastern European Celts" reflects genuine scholarly disagreement rather than incomplete research — the distribution of these small silvers overlaps territories associated with multiple tribal groupings in the Carpathian Basin during the La Tène period. The two-century date range assigned to the type is an honest acknowledgment that die-linked sequences have not been established firmly enough to narrow the window.
Göbl's Pl. 39 placement groups it within a cluster of fractional issues whose weight reduction from the original Macedonian drachm standard was gradual and inconsistent across dies.