Stater

Tarsos, the principal city of Cilicia, operated under Persian-sanctioned autonomy during this period, with local dynasts issuing coinage to fund both civic administration and tribute obligations to the Achaemenid crown. The Cilician satraps exercised considerable latitude over their mints, and Tarsian staters of this era circulated widely across the eastern Mediterranean — turning up in hoards from Egypt to the Levant — largely because Persian military campaigns created constant demand for standardized silver payments to mercenary troops.

The SNG Levante 1 reference places this among the earliest and most canonical specimens of the series.