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Stater
| Issuer | Kyzikos |
|---|---|
| Year | 600 BC - 550 BC |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Silver Stater (3) |
| 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 | Incuse square punch of irregular rectangular form, deeply impressed into the flan by the hammering technique typical of early archaic Greek coinage. The interior of the incuse is divided by a raised vertical ridge, creating two recessed compartments. The surface is uneven and shows no figural design or inscription, consistent with the primitive reverse treatment of Kyzikene staters of this period. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Log in to see details |
| Mintage | ND (600 BC - 550 BC) |
| Additional information |
Kyzikos, a Milesian colony on the Propontis, became one of the ancient world's most prolific producers of electrum coinage, and its staters circulated far beyond the Black Sea trade zone into which the city was commercially embedded. The Kyzikene stater functioned effectively as an international reserve currency across the Greek world for roughly two centuries — a remarkable run for any ancient monetary type.
The billon composition here, rather than the higher-electrum alloy of later Kyzikene issues, places this among the earlier production, when natural pale gold from regional river sources had not yet been standardized against a controlled gold-silver ratio.