Myshemihekte

Among the earliest electrum fractional coinage struck anywhere in the ancient world, these tiny pieces predate standardized monetary systems by decades. The issuing city remains unattributed with certainty — Phocaea, Miletus, and several lesser Ionian centers have all been proposed, with no scholarly consensus. The natural electrum alloy used at this period was not yet artificially controlled for gold-silver ratio, meaning individual pieces vary in composition even within a single type.

At roughly one ninety-sixth of a stater, this denomination saw daily market use for small transactions at a time when coinage itself was barely a generation old.