Stater

Karthaia was one of four poleis on the island of Keos, and among the earliest Aegean island mints to strike silver coinage. This stater dates to the archaic period, when Keos sat astride lucrative trade routes between Athens and the Cyclades. The island's principal export — a red dye derived from the madder plant — generated enough commercial wealth to justify a local silver coinage, likely produced to facilitate transactions with Attic and Corinthian merchants rather than for civic prestige alone.

Gillet 919 is among the scarcer documented die combinations for this type.