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Here is a
great 'new' rarity from south of
the Thames: the Beaded Tail gold
quarter stater. If anyone still
have any doubt that the Regini
were the wealthiest and most
innovative tribe in the southern
region (not the Atrebates as
previously imagined), they
should take note of the number
of uninscribed gold quarter
staters minted in West Sussex in
the third quarter of the first
century BC. We reckon there were
over 30 different types. Most of
these, including this Beaded
Tail quarter, are variations on
the familiar Qc wreath theme.
And most of them are also
excessively rare, with only a
few examples recorded for each
type. As the name implies, the
main distinguishing feature of
this type is the fact hat the
left-facing horse has a single
beaded tail, (not three like the
more common Qc quarters). With
only two specimens recorded, our
attribution of this type to the
Regini is tentative. The style
of the wreath motif and the
scissor-like head of the horse
both suggest that the type is
Reginian, but its findspot (near
Alton, Hampshire) doesn’t
reinforce this. This is an
excessively rare gold coin in
exceptionally fine condition. To be sold by phone
bid,
Chris Rudd
March catalogue.
25.1.10 |
