PAMPHYLIA. Aspendos. Circa 380/75-330/25 BC. Stater (Silver, 23 mm, 10.87 g, 12 h). Two wrestlers beginning to grapple with each other: the righthand one extends his right leg between his opponent's legs, grasps his right shoulder with his left hand and his left forearm with his right hand; the lefthand wrestler grasps his opponent's right knee with his left hand and grasps his belt with his right. Rev. [ΕΣΤ]-ϜΕ[Δ]-IIV-Σ Slinger striding right, preparing to launch his sling-bolt; in the field to left, triskeles to right; at the slinger's feet to right, statue of Athena on a low pedestal to right, helmeted and wearing her aegis, holding a long spear with right hand and resting her left on her shield propped up before her. I. Svoronos, "The Mavromichali Collection", [in Greek], JIAN VI, 1903, p. 194, 139 and pl. XII, 5 ( same reverse die ). SNG Copenhagen 436 ( but mistakenly classified as being from Sillyum ). Cf. SNG von Aulock 4503 ( but lacking the pedestal on the reverse ). Tekin Series 4. Very rare. A most attractive coin, lightly toned and clearly struck. Nearly extremely fine.

From the collection of Major Anthony F. Milavic, USMC (Ret.), ex Numismatic Fine Arts XXII, 1 June 1989, 329.

Aside from the masterful way the two wrestlers are treated on the obverse, there is something else that is very interesting about this very rare coin ( only 5 or 6 examples are known, of which this is probably the best ): the detailed depiction of a statue of Athena that appears as a symbol on the reverse. In the NFA catalogue she was identified as the Parthenos, but that cannot be: she is wearing a normal Attic helmet, rather than a triple-crested one; and unlike the Parthenos she has the shield in one hand and the spear in the the other. Her best parallel is found on Athenian coin struck under Gallienus, as Svoronos, Trésor, pl. 84, 24-25.