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Drachm
| Issuer | Teos |
|---|---|
| Year | 540 BC - 478 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Drachm (1) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Deep quadripartite incuse square of irregular form, divided by raised ridges into four recessed compartments of unequal size, typical of early archaic Greek hammered coinage where the reverse punch served purely as a mechanical device to drive the blank against the obverse die. The incuse is notably deep and irregular at the intersections, consistent with hand-struck production of the late sixth to early fifth century BC. No legend or subsidiary device is present. |
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| Mint | Teos, Ionia |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Teos was one of the twelve cities of the Ionian League, and its early coinage falls squarely within the period of Persian domination following Cyrus the Great's conquest of Lydia around 547 BC. The city briefly abandoned its mint entirely — not from conquest, but from self-imposed exile: around 540 BC, a significant portion of the Tean population chose mass emigration to Abdera in Thrace rather than submit to Persian-imposed tribute, an event recorded by Herodotus. Those who remained eventually resumed coinage production under Persian oversight.
The series to which this drachm belongs predates the Athenian monetary reforms that would later pressure Aegean mints toward standardization. Teos struck on the Chian weight standard throughout this period.