Catalog
Stater
| Issuer | Gortyna |
|---|---|
| Year | 330 BC - 270 BC |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| 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 bull standing to the left in a naturalistic pose, its head dramatically turned back to the right as it attempts to ward off a fly alighting upon its left rear hoof. The muscular anatomy of the animal is rendered with exceptional skill and vivid realism, a hallmark of Gortynian engraving of the late Classical period. The field is plain, with no exergual line or inscription, and the flan retains the irregular outline typical of hammered Cretan silver coinage. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Log in to see details |
| Mint | Gortyna, Crete |
| Mintage | Log in to see details |
| Additional information |
Gortyna was one of Crete's most powerful poleis, and its coinage circulated across a island that sat at the intersection of Aegean, Egyptian, and Levantine trade networks. The city's mint was active through a period of significant political turbulence on Crete, when shifting alliances among the major cities frequently disrupted commerce and prompted irregular issue patterns — which likely accounts for the variety designation against the Svoronos corpus.