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Hekte
| Issuer | Mytilene |
|---|---|
| Year | 412 BC - 378 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Hekte (14⁄3) |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| 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 | A Corinthian helmet rendered facing and centered within a linear square border, itself set within a shallow incuse square that occupies the full reverse field. The helmet is depicted frontally, with characteristic cheekpieces framing the open face-guard, a pronounced nasal bar, and a short crest projecting upward from the crown. The bold, symmetrical composition is executed in relief against the incuse background, a hallmark of the Mytilene hekte series. No legend or exergual inscription is present. |
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| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Mytilene |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Mytilene's electrum hektes were struck under a long-running civic agreement with Phokaia — the two cities alternating annual issues, a monetary arrangement that survived wars, oligarchic coups, and the catastrophic Athenian debate of 427 BC in which the entire male population of Mytilene was nearly condemned to death by assembly vote. Bodenstedt 66 falls within the mature phase of the series, after production resumed with apparent confidence despite the city's precarious position between Athenian and later Spartan spheres of influence.
The natural electrum alloy used in these hektes varies in gold content across the series, typically running between 40% and 55% gold — a range tight enough to suggest quality control, but wide enough to reflect the inconsistency of the raw Lydian metal sources.