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1⁄24 Stater - Alyattes II
| Issuer | Kings of Lydia |
|---|---|
| Year | 610 BC - 560 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Forepart of a lion's head facing right, rendered in archaic Lydian style with boldly modelled open jaws displaying prominent teeth. A distinctive globule appears on the forehead, serving as a royal or divine attribute. The mane is rendered with deeply grooved, stylised striations radiating from the neck and cheek, conveying power and naturalistic texture within the conventions of early Anatolian coinage. The design occupies the full flan, with the truncation of the neck visible at the lower right, and no legend or inscription is present in the field. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Alyattes II inherited a kingdom already experimenting with struck coinage — likely initiated under his predecessor Ardys or possibly Gyges — but it was during his reign that Lydian electrum issues became systematically standardized. The 1/24 stater denomination, among the smallest in the series, served practical small-transaction needs at a time when the Lydian economy was expanding aggressively through western Anatolia. Croesus, his son and successor, would eventually abandon electrum altogether in favor of pure gold and silver bimetallism, making these alloy pieces a finite episode in monetary history.