This, howThese wood

instead of woodcuts sprinkled over all the pages. ever, is a matter of taste, and not easy to decide. cuts are certainly in some cases successful, and their number is the most attractive feature of the volume. The Greek spelling of words is, we notice, in many cases substituted for the Latin; had this been done more consistently and completely it would have been better, and it is a pity that the overuse of terms such as same and similar cause a strain on the reader's attention. But small defects of this kind ought not to be dwelt on when Mr. Poole's work shows a decided advance in accuracy on previous catalogues, especially on Carelli's great work.

The strongest impression which remains on the mind, after looking over any catalogue of Italian coins, is of pleasure at the healthy freshness they show in the enjoyment of nature; perhaps it would be going too far to call that enjoyment worship. Trees, flowers, and crops, the insects of the corn-field, and the fishes of the river, appear in the most natural and pleasing aspects on the coins of Cumæ, Neapolis, Metapontum, and other cities. One sees how these Western Greeks lived in the open air and rejoiced in tilling the fields. No place could be a more appropriate scene for the charming seventh idyll of Theokritus than Velia; nor could genuine pastoral poetry have arisen except among a race who joined Greek taste to the Italian country life. The interest and charm which in this aspect attaches to Italian coins almost makes up for their comparative deficiency in historical and archæological interest. Such deficiency, however, can only be considered as comparative, not as absolute, or a writer with the genius of Mommsen would scarcely have spent so much time in their study. It may, however, fairly be said that the recent labours of Mommsen and others have quite exhausted the subject of Italian coins in an archæological point of view, and that few questions remain of importance, as to which we may expect light from volumes like the present.

In the case of Sicily it is quite otherwise. Except the antiquated volume of Castelli and the scarcely-commenced work of Salinas, we have hardly any book of value treating of the very interesting coins of Sicily. And it is certain that a close and careful study of those coins would enable one to fix the date of each with very far greater exactness than is the case in Italy, so as to give really interesting historical indications. We therefore welcome the announcement that a catalogue of coins of Sicily is in progress at the Museum, and hope it may not be very long before it may appear.

MISCELLANEA.

COINS OF HENRY I. FOUND NEAR BATTLE, SUSSEX.-The following twelve coins of Henry I. were placed in my hands in October, 1870, by E. M. Dewing, Esq. They were found in 1860 (?) near Battle, and are now in the possession of the Rev. R. F. Whistler, M.A., Rector of Ilketshall St. John, Bungay, Suffolk. The legends of all are more or less imperfect; there are traces only of the letters dotted below.

The types of the coins are as follows:-No. 4, Hawkins (Ruding, Suppl., Pl. i. fig. 6); No. 6 Hawkins (Hawk., fig. 255), and No. 9, Hawkins (Hawk., fig. 258).

Only one specimen of the first and last occurs, both types being rare, especially the last, of which, according to Mr. Hawkins, only four specimens are known, three of them being in the British Museum.

(A.) Type of No. 4.

1. Rev. SPIRTIC. ON LVND.

(London.)

Moneyer not in Ruding: the name occurs among the moneyers of William I. (Ruding, vol. i. p. 157. Third ed.) (B.) Type of No. 6.

1. Rev.-... EAT.. ON BRIS. (Bristol.)

2. Rev.-.

ON EXCE. (Exeter.)

No coins of Henry I. belonging to this mint are mentioned by Ruding.

3. Rev.-EDRIC[VS] ON HERE. (Hereford.)

This moneyer is not among those of Henry I. given in Ruding, who mentions one of the same name under Stephen.

4. Rev.—. . . . ET ON PINC. (Winchester.)

Another coin has also PINC, but not a letter of the moneyer's name can be read.

There are six other coins of this type, the reverses of which are illegible, so that neither moneyer nor mint can safely be determined from them. On one only can either of them be rationally conjectured; REMAN can be read securely, which is preceded by E or F apparently: if the name was HEREMAN, as seems not improbable, it is not found in Ruding; indeed, there is nothing like this name among his moneyers of Henry I. (C.) Type of No. 9. (But with cross in the centre of the reverse, as figured in Ruding, Suppl. II., Pl. i. fig. 3.) 1. Rev. [PV]LFPINE (on outer circle.)

ON LVNDENE (on inner circle.) (London.) The mint is certain; the moneyer (Wulfwine) somewhat un

certain.

CHURCHILL BABINGTON.

SALE OF A REMARKABLE COLLECTION OF SCOTTISH COINS IN EDINBURGH.-On the 22nd of April Mr. Dowell disposed by auction of one of the most extensive collections of Scottish coins ever publicly sold in Edinburgh. Some time ago the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland acquired by purchase from the Faculty of Advocates the well-known cabinet of coins bequeathed to them nearly two hundred years ago by Mr. Sutherland. This collection contained many rare and fine duplicates, especially in the gold series, and it was determined to sell these, along with some others belonging to the Society. The sale catalogue comprised 350 lots, which included a small collection of English gold. The prices realised were very high, as might have been expected from the historical interest attaching to the collection. Among the principal rarities were the lion with tressure of Robert II., of which but one other specimen is known to exist-£12. St. Andrews of James I.-£9 and £7.

Two

St. Andrews of James II.-£10 and £26. The half St. Andrew -£14. Rider of James III.-£7. Unicorn of James IV., with numeral-£14; half unicorn-£19; half rider-£7; quarter rider £10. James V. écu, PER LINGNV, &c.-£15. thirds of bonnet piece-£11 and £10. Mary ryal-£14; half ryal-£13. James VI. lion, 1588-£14; two-thirds of lion, 1587-£50; one-third of lion, 1584-£60; hat-piece, 1593 -£7.

In the silver, the halfpenny of Robert Bruce brought 32s., and the farthing, though fractured, 40s. A Stirling groat of James I., in splendid order-£3 10s. An Aberdeen groat of James II.-£5; another-£4 10s. A Berwick groat of James III. £2. A groat of James III.'s fifth coinage-£4 48. ; another of his sixth coinage-£4 14s.; another-£3 5s. A groat of James IV.'s fifth coinage-£3 12s. 6d. Mary testoon of 1562-£7. Thistle noble of 1581-£14; and half thistle noble of 1581-£10. The prices got for the billon and copper coins, which comprised many exceedingly rare varieties, were also very high. The whole sale produced upwards of £800.

XI.

ON SOME INTERESTING GREEK COINS-ATHENS,

ACHAIA, SICYON, SUSIANA.

I WISH to make more widely known a few very interesting Greek coins, now in the British Museum, and either unpublished, or not before correctly described.

1. An archaic tetradrachm of Athens (Pl. VII., fig. 1.) Obv.-Gorgon-head.

Rev.-Bull's head, facing, in an incuse square. Size 8. Weight 254.8 grains.

The Gorgon-head on the obverse of this coin is unmistakable, and in a moment connects it with the tetradrachms generally ascribed to Athens, and frequently found in Attica, which bear the same device. The reverse type is apparently quite new, and thus we find another added to the many varieties of the early Athenian coinage, before the owl came into fashion and superseded all other types. Archæologists have attributed to Phocis a didrachm with a bull's head facing on the obverse and the Attic incuse on the reverse. (Pl. VII., fig. 2.) The tetradrachm described above just furnishes the missing link which may enable us to class this also with the Athenian coinage. The bulls on these two coins are much alike, and the reverse of the didrachm is Attic, and not, so far

as we know, at all connected with Phocis. Other circumstances point in the same direction. At Phocis the Æginetan scale was in use, the present didrachm is of Attic weight; besides, I have the authority of Professor Rhousopoulos for the assertion, that coins like it are sometimes dug up close to Athens. We can hardly be mistaken, therefore, in removing this didrachm from the series of Phocis to that of Athens; especially as its attribution to Phocis was, I believe, conjectural, and based only on the analogy of the later coinage of that district. An interesting question, and one which has much puzzled archæologists, is thus raised. There was a tradition at Athens that their present coinage had been preceded by didrachms bearing the figure of a bull, and so called Bóes. Some carried these back to the days of Theseus; all agreed that they dated from a remote antiquity. The didrachm which I have just claimed for Athens from Phocis comes nearer to the Boûs than any coin known. It is true that the head of a bull is not the

figure of one, and this is of course a great difficulty, the only one in the case. But when we consider how thoroughly excavated the soil of Athens has been, it must be conceded that it is almost impossible that there should yet remain hidden in it many of these ox-type coins of which not one has been found. It is also impossible to believe that so lasting and wide-spread a coinage as the Athenian antiquaries describe could have passed away without leaving substantial vestiges. We are therefore driven on to one or the other horn of this dilemma-either the didrachm which suggested these remarks is the true Attic Bous, or the Attic Boûs never existed at all.

1

· βοῦν ἐγχαράξας, Plutarch. ὅτι βοῦν ειχεν ἐντετυπωμένον,

Pollux. See below.