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Obol
| Issuer | Massalia |
|---|---|
| Year | 470 BC - 450 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Log in to see details |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
| Thickness | Log in to see details |
| Shape | Log in to see details |
| Technique | Log in to see details |
| Orientation | Variable alignment ↺ |
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| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | Log in to see details |
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| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
| Mint | Massalia |
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| Additional information |
Massalia — the Greek colonial city modern Marseille occupies — was among the most prolific coin-issuing poleis of the western Mediterranean, and its fractional silver coinage circulated far inland along trade routes into Gaul well before Celtic peoples began striking their own issues. The obol denomination specifically served the small transactions of a busy port economy: fish, oil, day labor.
LT 508 places this piece within Latour's foundational typology of Gaulish and proto-Gaulish coinage, itself a reminder that Massalian fractions were the direct prototypes Celtic die-cutters would eventually imitate and progressively abstract over subsequent centuries.