yeah, as Dino said earlier it is amazing how well they did on such a small canvas.
this series is difficult to find
good information about. originally an Oscan village, it was quite Hellenised by the time of this coin. it is not even known for sure where Phistelia was (other than somewhere in
Campania), but it is assumed to have been near the coast as other coins from there depict shells and other marine
themes.
stylistically it is a rather weird looking little coin, imo, and the typical
attribution of 'Nymph facing' isn't very specific. but i've always thought that she has certain lion-like features, so i wonder if that was intentional or just a fancy of my own.
there are other silver fractions from Phistelia with very different artistic
style, looking far more archaic than this coin, and possibly showing an Etruscan influence.
obviously i need to do more research.
~
Peter