NM·9

From Lexicon Leponticum

Coin Type
Coin Type:	Lejeune B1, Pautasso "Salassi" b
Description:	obverse: small circle, three parallel lines, and triangle (?) with grid pattern, reverse: ana, trident, tikou, and triangle
Material (main component):	gold
Average Diameter:
Average Thickness:
Average Weight:	6.943 g0.006943 kg 0.0153067 lb
Workmanship:
Archaeological Culture:	unknown
Date:
Date derived from:
Number of Known Pieces:	1
Area of Circulation:
Mint / Main Site:	unknown
Coordinates (approx.):	47° 17' 60" N, 8° 5' 60" ELatitude: 47.3 Longitude: 8.1
Coin Legend
Idealised Transliteration:	ana / tikou
Idealised Original Script:
Variant Reading:	tikou / ana (more prominent segment first), anatikou (one word)
Position:	back, centre, top
Orientation:	0°
Direction of Writing:	sinistroverse
Script:	North Italic Script
Letter Height:	0
Number of Letters:	8
Inscription Type:	unknown
Language:	unknown
Syntactic Analysis:	unknown
Meaning:	unknown, probably abbrevations
Alternative Sigla:	none
Sources:	Pautasso 1966: 137 & 140 & pl. CVII (.3) & pl. CXI (541) Lejeune 1971: 128

Images

"Salassian" gold stater with ana tikou legend from Kulm (Aargau)

Commentary

The coin was found in Kulm, near Lenzburg (Aargau). It seems to be mentioned first in 1829 and is kept in the Historisches Museum at Bern (Pautasso 1966: 140).
The variant reading tikou ana supposes two different legends on the coin. The sequence ana could though be the part of anatikou or tikouana. Normally the prominent part of the legend is the one in the "cartouche", which in this case would support the reading tikouana. Lejeune (1971: 128) argues, that there is no motivation for such a division of a longer name in a coin legend. Therefore he presumes two abbreviated legends: the prominent one (see tikou) referring to an anthroponyme and ana on the side possibly referring to an ethnic name. (Lejeune 1971: 128-129)

Bibliography