Catalog
See full images - free registration
Continue with Google - no registration!
or register with email
Why register? Just to keep bots out of our catalog. Your email stays private - we will never share it or send you anything uninvited. We guarantee you that!
Quarter-Obol
| Issuer | Holmoi |
|---|---|
| Year | 490 BC - 375 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Tetartemorion (1⁄24) |
| 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 | Log in to see details |
| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
| Reference(s) | Log in to see details |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Log in to see details |
| Obverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Reverse description | A quadripartite incuse square dominates the reverse field, formed by two intersecting diagonal grooves dividing the surface into four recessed triangular compartments of roughly equal size. This deeply impressed geometric device is characteristic of early archaic Greek coinage from Asia Minor and the northern Aegean region, serving as the anvil die impression. The surface within the incuse areas shows the natural texture of the hammered silver flan, with no inscription or additional devices present. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Holmoi was a minor settlement on the Black Sea coast of Pontus, its exact location still disputed among scholars — most place it near modern Giresun, Turkey. The city struck coinage almost certainly to facilitate local trade rather than any regional ambition, and the quarter-obol sits at the smallest practical denomination of ancient Greek silver coinage. At 0.3 grams, these pieces pushed the absolute limit of what a mint could produce and a market could use.