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Stater
| Issuer | Kyzikos |
|---|---|
| Year | 500 BC - 450 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Male head in profile facing left, depicted in archaic Greek style with finely rendered curly hair encircling the crown and a prominent beard. The face displays the characteristic archaic treatment with almond-shaped eye and strong, idealized features. The head is set within a broad, unadorned field on the irregular flan typical of Kyzikene electrum coinage. No legend or inscription appears. The overall relief is bold and well-executed, consistent with the finest artistic standards of early fifth-century Ionian coinage. |
|---|---|
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Kyzikos, the Propontine city that dominated Black Sea trade routes during the fifth century BC, issued electrum staters on a scale and consistency unmatched by any other Greek mint of the period. The Kyzikenoi, as these coins were known across the Greek world, functioned as a de facto international reserve currency from roughly the Persian Wars through the mid-fourth century — accepted by mercenary contractors, grain merchants, and Athenian generals alike. Their electrum was alloyed from Lydian river gold, and the city maintained quality standards strictly enough that the coins circulated by tale rather than weight.
The tuna fish punched into every reverse was not decorative convention but a civic guarantee — Kyzikos's foundational symbol and quality mark simultaneously.