Obol

Phokaia was among the most aggressively colonial of the Ionian Greek cities, establishing Massalia (modern Marseille) and Emporion (Empúries) before the Persian Wars disrupted the entire Aegean order. These obols circulated during precisely the period when Phokaia was navigating Achaemenid pressure — Cyrus had already absorbed Lydia by 547 BC, and the Phokaians famously chose mass emigration over Persian rule before eventually returning under a negotiated arrangement.

The SNG von Aulock range 1813–15 encompasses minor die variations within the type. At 0.82g, these were workhorse fractions — small enough for daily market exchange in a city that built its wealth on long-distance maritime trade rather than agricultural surplus.