Lot 2044
Crete, Gortyna. Silver Stater (11.4 g), 4th century BC. Europa seated half right in bough of tree, resting hand on branch below and holding eagle(?)-tipped scepter. Reverse: Cretan bull standing right, head facing; below, bee. Svoronos 70, pl. XIV, 17 (same dies); Le Rider 67, pl. XIX, 3 (same dies). Unusually well struck on a nice, larg flan. Well centered and Very Rare. Lightly toned. Overtruck on an earlier coin. Extremely Fine.
Europa was a Phoenician princess whose beauty attracted the attention of the god Zeus. Desiring her, he turned himself into a magnificent white bull and intermingled with her father's herd. When she saw him, she approached him and stroked his side, then leaped onto his back. Zeus immediately ran out to sea and swam to Crete, where Europa became the island's first queen. Subsequently, Zeus arranged the stars known as the constellation Taurus in the shape of the white bull which he had assumed during this episode.
Estimated Value $10,000 - 12,000.
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