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Tetartemorion
| Issuer | Mylasa |
|---|---|
| Year | 420 BC - 390 BC |
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| Value | Log in to see details |
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| Composition | Silver |
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| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | A bird, identified as an eagle or crow, depicted standing to the left with wings folded, set within a shallow incuse square. Two pellets flank the bird within the incuse square, one positioned above and to the right of the bird's head and one to the lower left. The incuse technique is typical of early Carian fractional silver coinage, and the composition is rendered in a schematic, archaic style. |
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| Mint | Mylasa |
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| Additional information |
Mylasa, the principal city of inland Caria, operated under Persian satrapal authority during this period, and its early silver coinage reflects the fractional denominations demanded by local market exchange rather than any imperial mandate. The tetartemorion — a quarter-obol — was among the smallest silver coins struck in the ancient world, produced specifically because even the obol was too large for everyday transactions in grain and oil.
The SNG von Aulock reference places this among a narrow, well-documented group, but surviving examples in collectible condition remain genuinely scarce given the attrition rate for coins this size in antiquity.