Siglos - Artaxerxes II / Darius III THE ROYAL COINAGE - 4th type C - late

The fourth type siglos was the dominant small silver of the western Persian empire for much of the fourth century, circulating heavily through Anatolia and the Levant alongside — and often in direct competition with — Greek fractional silver. Artaxerxes II's reign was the longest of any Achaemenid king, spanning 45 years, yet the royal coinage changed almost imperceptibly throughout; the type boundaries scholars use today are largely constructs imposed by later die studies rather than any intentional royal reform.

By the reign of Darius III, siglos production was already declining as Alexander's campaigns disrupted Persian minting infrastructure. Many late-type pieces were likely melted after Gaugamela in 331 BC to fund Greek operations.