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Hemidrachm
| Issuer | Abdera |
|---|---|
| Year | 520 BC |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 1.81 g |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Quadripartite incuse square of rough, uneven workmanship, divided by two intersecting diagonal ridges into four depressed triangular compartments. The incuse impression retains traces of the griffin type from the obverse punch, consistent with early archaic coining technique. The square border is slightly irregular, characteristic of the hammered fabric of this period. No legend or inscription is present. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Abdera's silver coinage was among the most respected in the northern Aegean trade network, struck by a city that owed its prosperity to its position on the Thracian coast and its access to timber, slaves, and grain routes. The city was refounded by Tean colonists around 545 BC, refugees fleeing the Persian advance under Harpagus — which places this hemidrachm within a generation of that resettlement.
The May reference without a catalog number suggests this piece either predates the fully classified sequence or represents an obverse/reverse pairing not yet formally attributed. Abdera's early issues are notoriously difficult to sequence given the number of magistrate name combinations on the reverse.