Catalog
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| Issuer | Uncertain Eastern European Celts |
|---|---|
| Year | 300 BC - 201 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Tetradrachm (4) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Stylised horseman advancing right, ultimately derived from the reverse type of the tetradrachms of Audoleon of Paeonia, executed in characteristic Celtic abstraction. The rider holds a palm branch, a defining iconographic element of this series, while a rosette appears in the field before the horse. A bird in flight is depicted behind the rider, furnishing the German designation 'Vogelreiter' (bird-rider) by which this type is catalogued. Horse and rider are reduced to essential graphic components, retaining a clear compositional narrative while departing markedly from the Hellenistic prototype. The overall execution reflects the Celtic tendency to dissolve naturalistic forms into bold, schematic patterning. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
The Audoleon/Vogelreiter type takes its name from a Paeonian king — Audoleon ruled roughly 315–286 BC — whose Macedonian-style coinage provided the probable prototype for Celtic imitators working somewhere in the middle Danube region. The attribution to "uncertain Eastern European Celts" reflects a genuine scholarly impasse: hoard evidence points broadly toward the Carpathian basin, but no single tribe or mint site has been convincingly fixed. Göbl's die studies suggest a relatively small production run, which aligns with the frequency, or rather the infrequency, with which this type appears at auction.