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Hekte
| Issuer | Mytilene |
|---|---|
| Year | 454 BC - 427 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | 10.0 mm |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Two confronted female heads shown in profile, their faces overlapping at the center, set within a recessed incuse square. The heads are rendered in relief against the sunken field, a technique characteristic of early Lesbian electrum coinage. The confronted arrangement creates a striking bilateral symmetry, with the facial features of both heads finely executed in the transitional archaic style. No inscription or legend accompanies the design. |
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| Mint | Mytilene |
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| Additional information |
Mytilene and Phokaia operated a formal agreement — likely dating to the early fifth century — under which both cities struck electrum hektai on a shared weight standard, an arrangement almost unique in the Greek world and documented by the near-identical fabric of surviving pieces from both mints. The natural electrum alloy used was sourced from the Lydian hinterland, with gold-to-silver ratios varying enough between dies that ancient users likely accepted them on trust rather than assay.
Bodenstedt 55 falls within the mature phase of the Mytilenaean series, before the city's catastrophic revolt against Athens in 428/7 BC and the near-annihilation Thucydides records.