Bull Leaping -- Pharkadon, Thessaly, Greece, c. 440 - 400 B.C.

ARCHAIC GAMES -- During religious festivals, the young men of Thessaly participated in bull leaping and bull wrestling. In bull wrestling, participants would jump from a horse, naked save a chlamys and cap, to bring a bull down to the ground.

The obverse shows a wrestler bringing down a bull and the reverse shows the horse running free after the leap was made. The game may have originated in Asia Minor and then traveled to the Minoans on Crete, from whom the people of Thessaly learned the sport.

Silver hemidrachm, SGCV I 2183; BMC Thessaly p. 42, 1; SNG Cop 209, VF, 2.783g, 16.1mm, 0o, obverse youth wrestling or restraining bull, both to right; reverse "F/AR/KAD/O", forepart of galloping horse right. INCREDIBLY RARE especially in this condition, in addition to which, this is a very HOT psychometric, connected psychically and very powerfully with the Minoans.

$650.00