August 9, 2018 – Following his 2008 publication on Achaian League coinage, enthusiastic collector and numismatic expert Steve M. Benner has now written a new book about the coinage of the ancient Greek leagues from the fifth through the first century BC. The author himself describes his work as follows:
Steve M. Benner, History and Coinage of the Ancient Greek Leagues: Fifth through First Centuries BC. Classical Numismatic Studies 11. Classical Numismatic Group, Lancaster/London 2018. 191 pages, incl. illustrations. Hardcover. $75.
„[This] book is not meant to be a groundbreaking book for numismatic studies, but more of a compilation of the newest information on the coinage of the ancient Greek leagues in the last five centuries before the Christian era. As a result, this work is directed at amateur collectors, who, like myself, would like to have at their disposal examples of each of the different leagues’ coin types with some explanation of the weights and symbolism. Since history is what drives me as an ancient coin collector, I have included a discussion of the history of each of the leagues, which helps to place the coinage in context with the league’s activities. I make no claim to be a classically trained numismatist, but only as a devoted collector for almost half a century who seeks to improve the information available to fellow collectors and maybe add a little to the body of ancient knowledge. This book, like my previous book, is a work of love: I believe that ancient Greek coins are works of art, in some cases magnificent works of art, that can be owned and admired by ordinary people. To be able to hold in one’s hand a piece of ancient history that may have been handled by Themistokles, Socrates, Alexander, Marcus Aurelius, Augustus, or another notable of ancient Greece or Rome is truly awesome.“
You can order Steve Benner´s numismatic study on the CNG website.