An ancient Greek silver Drachm, set in a 14 carat gold bezel with pendant loop. The Drachm depicts Alexander the Great of the Kingdom of Macedonia, the most successful general of all history. The front shows an idealised portrait of Alexander in the guise of the mythical hero Heracles, clad in a Nemean lion skin headdress. It is in high relief, the detail is lovely. The back depicts the God Zeus, seated with bare chest, he holds a trident and has a bird in the other hand. It also contains a number of symbols and letters that indicate the mint mark for Amphipolis (right angle above torch, and M and star below chair). Amphipolis was an important naval base during the reign of Alexander, it ceased to exist around 400 AD. The pendant ring is stamped 585, indicating the gold is 14 carat. Note - it has been brought to our attention by a coin expert that this is not an original coin, but a later replica, as only Poseidan, not Zeus, should be holding a trident, apologies. We have reduced the price by 50%.

An interesting Roman silver Ligula (or spatula), used for getting cosmetics (or medicinal products) out of long necked jars (balsamaries). The ligula has a rounded shaft with a slight knob on the end, a baluster decoration on the stem (perhaps to improve grip), and a feather or leaf shaped bowl, the 2 sides joined at a 135 degree angle. The bowl also has 3 curved engraved lines, possibly for decoration. The stem is quite rough to the feel (the opposite of smooth and even), it has a number of knocks, small cracks and holes, and discouloured patches, perhaps the result of a long and rough life, but we feel more likely from impurities in the silver when it was made (we welcome opinions, this is certainly not our area of expertise, thanks)