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Hekte
| Issuer | Phokaia |
|---|---|
| Year | 521 BC - 478 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Head of a roaring lion facing left in high relief, rendered in the archaic Greek artistic style with exaggerated mane depicted as a radiating array of stylized, pointed locks framing the face. The lion's features are boldly modeled, with an open mouth, prominent eye, and deeply incised facial details characteristic of early Phokaian electrum coinage. The design fills the irregular flan, with the mane extending nearly to the coin's edge. No legend or inscription is present in the field. |
|---|---|
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| Mintage | ND (521 BC - 478 BC) |
| Additional information |
Phokaia was among the earliest Greek cities to strike electrum coinage, and its hektes circulated widely through Ionian trade networks long before the Persian conquest disrupted the city's commercial dominance. The natural alloy used here — sourced from Lydian river deposits rather than artificially blended — means the gold-to-silver ratio varies between individual specimens, a fact Bodenstedt's die study had to account for when establishing type boundaries.
Bodenstedt 36 falls within the period bracketed by Darius I's consolidation of Ionian control and the aftermath of the Ionian Revolt, when Phokaia's output contracted sharply.