Hekte

Kyzikos was among the most prolific issuers of electrum coinage in the ancient Greek world, and its hektai circulated far beyond the Propontis region — finds have turned up across the Black Sea littoral and into the Aegean trade network. The city's position on the southern shore of the Propontis made it a natural clearinghouse for commerce between the Mediterranean and the grain routes of the Pontic steppe.

The natural electrum alloy used by Kyzikene minters varied in gold content from piece to piece, a known inconsistency the city offset through weight standardization rather than fineness guarantees.