Diobol

Methymna, on the northern coast of Lesbos, was one of the island's five principal poleis and a persistent rival to the dominant Mytilene. Its independent coinage — produced well before Lesbos consolidated under Athenian influence following the failed revolt of 428–427 BC — reflects a civic identity the city defended fiercely. Methymnaean silver of this period is genuinely scarce in any form; the polis was never a major commercial power, and its output was correspondingly limited.