Cilicia, Tarsus, Pharnabazus. Stater; Cilicia, Tarsus, Pharnabazus;

Cilicia, Tarsus, Pharnabazus. Stater; Cilicia, Tarsus, Pharnabazus; c. 380-373 BC, Stater, 10.69g. Moysey Issue 3, dies 2/- (unrecorded reverse die), SNG Paris-. Obv: Female head facing, turned slightly l.; wearing pendant earring and both a pearl and a pendant necklace; dolphin to lower l. Rx: Helmeted male head l., wearing decorated Attic helmet; Aramaic inscription before. The obverse dolphin is a witty homage to Kimons facing head of Arethusa, from which this exquisite die ultimately derives. Ex Nomos 25, 20 November 2022, lot 233, where the cataloguer plausibly speculates that these marvelous dies are the prototypes for this entire extended series.Of the numerous coins of this issue that we have handled, this is by far the finest. The female goddess pictured on the obverse is utterly exquisite, and for the first time, we have been able to identify a fish on the lower left corner of this coin. Virtually MS