Stater

Kyzikos, the Propontic city on the southern shore of the Marmara, maintained one of the ancient world's most remarkable monetary monopolies for nearly two centuries. Its electrum staters functioned as the dominant trade currency across the Black Sea and Aegean commercial networks, accepted not because any state mandated it but because merchants trusted the consistency of their natural electrum alloy and the city's reputation for honest weight. Athens, Persia, and the Black Sea grain traders all used them interchangeably.

The type catalogued under Von Fritze 183 belongs to the later phase of the series, when Kyzikos was navigating Persian satrapal pressure while preserving its mint's independence. Production ceased entirely around 330 BC, likely connected to Macedonian economic reorganization of the region under Alexander.