FRASCATIUS ANCIENTS
A BEAUTIFUL CAST BRONZE DOLPHIN COIN OF OLBIA THRACE (BLACK SEA AREA) FROM 5TH – 4TH CENTURIES BC.
THIS AUCTION IS FOR ONE DOLPHIN COIN. THE PHOTO IS OF THE SAME COIN FROM EACH SIDE. 2ND PHOTO IS FROM A REFERENCE BOOK SHOWING THE VARIOUS SHAPES OF THE BRONZE DOLPHINS OF OLBIA THIS FORM OF MONEY IS SAID TO HAVE ORIGINATED FROM SACRIFICIAL TOKENS USED IN THE TEMPLE OF APOLLO. The casting method employed was a standard method adopted by the Celts in France who originated in this area. The dolphins were created in a tree mold connected by the tail, which is why you find so many short examples, the tails were trimmed off in a hurry to finish and get on to casting the next batch. Sometimes the overflow of pouring the bronze into the molds created some fascinating shapes and protrusions for the dolphins. THE SIZE IS 29 X 9 MM AND 1.62 GRAMS.
SNG Cop 67 - 72
OBVERSE – Dolphin facing right
REVERSE – Dolphin facing left
In the ancient city of Olbia on the edge of the Black Sea, a rather unique form of coinage appeared from the 5th – 4th centuries BC. Instead of making round coins the Olbians made coins shaped like dolphins. These coins were made of cast bronze. Olbia was located in the area of modern Bulgaria and Ukraine and was populated by Greek peoples. It is interesting and quite unusual that the Olbians adopted a casting method and the dolphin shape rather than the traditional round coinage of their neighbors and indeed the entire Greek world. The reason for dolphin shaped coins is possibly this: There is a large population of bottle-nose dolphins in the Black Sea and the ancient peoples would have seen these playful creatures almost daily. Bottle-nose dolphins are the easy to train. The Olbians evidently enjoyed the dolphins to the extent that they patterned their coinage after them. Delphinus, the Dolphin, was known by Ancient Greeks as the 'Sacred Fish' and appears twice in mythology. Once, a dolphin helped Posideon locate the mermaid, Amphitrite, and brought her back to be Poseidon's Queen in his golden palace at the bottom of the sea. As a reward, Poseidon placed the dolphin among the stars. The second appearance is when Arion, a poet and musician, was sailing back to Greece. His crew turned against him, and using a Lyre, he summoned up a school of dolphins, throwing himself into the sea; one of the dolphins carried him on its back to Greece.
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