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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Greek Coins| ▸ |Archaic Origins||View Options:  |  |  |   

Archaic Origins - The First Coins of Mankind

The coins below are among the first struck by mankind. Coins struck in the later classical and Hellenistic periods, but in archaic or archaized style are also included here. Click here to read "From the Origin of Coins to Croesus."

Kyzikos, Mysia, c. 550 - 450 B.C.

|Cyzicus|, |Kyzikos,| |Mysia,| |c.| |550| |-| |450| |B.C.||Hekte| |(1/6| |Stater)|
Seirios (Sirius) was the god or goddess of the Dog-Star, the brightest star of the constellation Canis Major. The pre-dawn rising of the star in the path of the sun was believed to be the source of the scorching heat and droughts of midsummer. Seirios appears in many guises was variously described as Maira daughter of the Titan Atlas, Maira the dog of the hero Icarius, Lailaps the hound of Orion, and Kyon Khryseos the golden-hound of Zeus. It may also have been associated with Orthros ("Morning Twilight") the hound of Geryon, giant of the west. The star was no doubt also connected with the dog-loving goddess Hekate who was the daughter of Perses "the Destroyer" and Asteria "the Starry One." -- www.theoi.com/Titan/AsterSeirios.html
SH86217. Electrum Hekte (1/6 Stater), Von Fritze I (Nomisma VII) 104 & pl. 3, 23; Boston MFA 1433; SNG BnF 245; SNG Cop -; SNGvA -; BMC Mysia -, VF, tight flan, edge cracks, weight 16.091 g, maximum diameter 19.9 mm, die axis 0o, Kyzikos mint, c. 550 - 450 B.C.; obverse winged dog (Sirius?) seated left, head turned back right, curved archaic wing, wearing collar, tunny fish below to left; reverse quadripartite incuse square; extremely rare; SOLD


Athens, Attica, Greece, c. 454 - 404 B.C., Old Style Tetradrachm

|Athens|, |Athens,| |Attica,| |Greece,| |c.| |454| |-| |404| |B.C.,| |Old| |Style| |Tetradrachm||tetradrachm|
The old-style tetradrachm of Athens is famous for its almond shaped eye, archaic smile, and charming owl reverse. Around 480 B.C. a wreath of olive leaves and a decorative scroll were added to Athena's helmet. On the reverse, a crescent moon was added.

During the period 449 - 413 B.C. huge quantities of tetradrachms were minted to finance grandiose building projects such as the Parthenon and to cover the costs of the Peloponnesian War.
SH90226. Silver tetradrachm, SNG Cop 31, SNG Munchen 49, Kroll 8, Dewing 1611, Gulbenkian 519, HGC 4 1597, SGCV I 2526, gEF, weight 17.184 g, maximum diameter 25.3 mm, die axis 180o, Athens mint, c. 454 - 404 B.C.; obverse head of Athena right, almond shaped eye, crested helmet with olive leaves and floral scroll, wire necklace, round earring, hair in parallel curves; reverse owl standing right, head facing, erect in posture, olive sprig and crescent left, AΘΕ downward on right, all within incuse square; ex Heritage CICF World and Ancient Coins Signature Auction 3032, lot 23180; ex The Dr. Patrick Tan Collection; SOLD


Ionia, c. 600 - 550 B.C.

|Archaic| |Electrum|, |Ionia,| |c.| |600| |-| |550| |B.C.||1/24| |stater|
As reported by B.V. Head in Chapter 5 of Excavations at Ephesus: The Archaic Artemisia, a coin of this type was one of five coins found in excavations underneath the foundations of the southern wall of the B cella of the Artemisia at Ephesus. The other four coins were lion head and lion paw types. Head wrote these coins must have been deposited during construction of the First Temple (A). Weidauer 145 is the coin found at the Artemisia (= Head Artemisia 79), now at the Arkeoloji Müzesi, Istanbul. The Weidauer coins have more wear (die wear?) than our coin, but do appear to be from the same obverse die.
SH75300. Electrum 1/24 stater, Milesian standard; Weidauer 145 - 146; Head Artemisia p. 86 and pl. 2, 79; cf. SNGvA 1781 (different style); Rosen 287 (same); SNG Kayhan 717 (same), EF, perhaps the finest known of a very rare and important type, weight 0.597 g, maximum diameter 6.7 mm, uncertain Ionian mint, c. 600 - 550 B.C.; obverse bridled head and neck of Pegasos left, with top edge of wing visible; reverse raised cross pattern within incuse square punch; ex Tkalec AG auction Feb 2013, lot 88, realized 2,000 Swiss francs ($2,151) plus fees; ex Gorny & Mosch auction 199 (10 Oct 2011), realized 2,000 EUR ($2,699) plus fees; very rare; SOLD


Athens, Attica, Greece, c. 454 - 404 B.C., Old Style Tetradrachm

|Athens|, |Athens,| |Attica,| |Greece,| |c.| |454| |-| |404| |B.C.,| |Old| |Style| |Tetradrachm||tetradrachm|
The old-style tetradrachm of Athens is famous for its almond shaped eye, archaic smile, and charming owl reverse. Around 480 B.C. a wreath of olive leaves and a decorative scroll were added to Athena's helmet. On the reverse, a crescent moon was added.

During the period 449 - 413 B.C. huge quantities of tetradrachms were minted to finance grandiose building projects such as the Parthenon and to cover the costs of the Peloponnesian War.
SH54920. Silver tetradrachm, SNG Cop 31, SNG Munchen 49, Kroll 8, Dewing 1611, Gulbenkian 519, HGC 4 1597, SGCV I 2526, gVF, well centered, weight 17.167 g, maximum diameter 25.6 mm, die axis 270o, Athens mint, obverse head of Athena right, almond shaped eye, crested helmet with olive leaves and floral scroll, wire necklace, round earring, hair in parallel curves; reverse owl standing right, head facing, erect in posture, olive sprig and crescent left, AΘΕ downward on right, all within incuse square; SOLD


Persian Empire, Lydia, Anatolia, Xerxes II - Artaxerxes II, c. 420 - 375 B.C.

|Persian| |Lydia|, |Persian| |Empire,| |Lydia,| |Anatolia,| |Xerxes| |II| |-| |Artaxerxes| |II,| |c.| |420| |-| |375| |B.C.||daric|
This type was minted in Lydia, Anatolia, while under Persian control, prior to Alexander the Great's conquest. The Persian or Achaemenid Empire (c. 550 - 330 B.C.) was the largest empire in ancient history extending across Asia, Africa and Europe, including Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, parts of Central Asia, Asia Minor, Thrace and Macedonia, much of the Black Sea coastal regions, Iraq, northern Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Palestine and Israel, Lebanon, Syria, and much of ancient Egypt as far west as Libya.Persian Empire
SH86216. Gold daric, Carradice Type IIIb, group C (pl. XIV, 42); BMC Arabia pl. XXV, 12; SNG Cop 276; Meadows Administration 323; Sunrise 28, gVF, tight flan, marks, reverse struck with a worn broken punch, weight 8.328 g, maximum diameter 18.9 mm, die axis 180o, Sardes (Sart, Turkey) mint, c. 420 - 375 B.C.; obverse kneeling-running figure of the Great King right, bearded, crowned, wearing kidaris and kandys, quiver on shoulder, transverse spear downward in right hand, bow in extended left hand; reverse oblong irregular rectangular incuse punch; SOLD


Athens, Attica, Greece, c. 454 - 449 B.C., Very Early "Old Style" Tetradrachm

|Athens|, |Athens,| |Attica,| |Greece,| |c.| |454| |-| |449| |B.C.,| |Very| |Early| |"Old| |Style"| |Tetradrachm||tetradrachm|
On this coin and all classic "old style" tetradrachms struck c. 454 - 404 B.C., the owl's tail feathers are represented by a single prong. On Athens' earlier issues, the owl's tail is composed of three separate feathers. Other than the single prong tail, this coin closely resembles the preceding issues of Starr Group V, in particular the palmette and olive heaves on Athena's helmet, and the robust owl. It is very likely this coin was among the earliest of the classical "old style" tetradrachms of the c. 454 - 404 B.C. issues.
GS87208. Silver tetradrachm, some characteristics of Starr Group V, but a single prong tail; cf. Svoronos Athens pl. 10, 16 - 18; Starr pl. XXII, 1 - 3; SNG Munchen 46, aEF, bold high relief, flow lines, light toning, bumps and marks, tight flan, mild die wear, slight double strike on obverse, tiny edge cracks, weight 17.175 g, maximum diameter 23.5 mm, die axis 75o, Athens mint, c. 454 - 449 B.C.; obverse head of Athena right, almond shaped eye, crested helmet with olive leaves and floral palmette scroll, wire necklace, round earring, hair in parallel curves; reverse robust owl standing right, head facing, tail of one long prong, olive sprig and crescent left, AΘΕ downward on right, all within incuse square; rare style variant; SOLD


Ionia, c. 600 - 550 B.C.

|Archaic| |Electrum|, |Ionia,| |c.| |600| |-| |550| |B.C.||Hekte| |(1/6| |Stater)|
Some numismatists have attributed this type to the Carian Island of Cos, due to the striking similarities to the archaic silver coinage of that island. Although this attribution is possible, most of the numismatic community accepts this type as Ionian in origin.
SH77551. Electrum Hekte (1/6 Stater), Unpublished in standard refs but about a dozen known from sales, cf. Rosen 346 - 347 (Anatolia, uncertain city, 1/96 Phocaic stater), VF, dark spots, weight 2.612 g, maximum diameter 10.0 mm, uncertain Ionian mint, Phocaic standard; obverse crab seen from above; reverse quadripartite incuse square; very rare; SOLD


Athens, Attica, Greece, c. 465 - 455 B.C., Transitional Early "Old Style" Tetradrachm

|Athens|, |Athens,| |Attica,| |Greece,| |c.| |465| |-| |455| |B.C.,| |Transitional| |Early| |"Old| |Style"| |Tetradrachm||tetradrachm|
This rare transitional early "old style" type features the most attractive owls of the entire Athenian tetradrachm series.
SL95874. Silver tetradrachm, Starr Group V.B, Series 2; Svoronos Athens pl. 10, 9; HGC 4 1596 (R2); SNG Cop -, NGC AU, strike 5/5, surface 4/5 (4629449-001), weight 17.17 g, maximum diameter 24.4 mm, die axis 90o, Athens mint, c. 465 - 454 B.C.; obverse head of Athena right, almond shaped eye, crested helmet with olive leaves and floral scroll, wire necklace, round earring, hair in parallel curves; reverse robust owl standing right, head facing, tail composed of three short feathers, olive sprig and crescent left, AΘΕ downward on right, all within incuse square; ex Heritage auction 232011, lot 62026; NGC| Lookup; rare; SOLD


Athens, Attica, Greece, c. 454 - 404 B.C., Old Style Tetradrachm

|Athens|, |Athens,| |Attica,| |Greece,| |c.| |454| |-| |404| |B.C.,| |Old| |Style| |Tetradrachm||tetradrachm|
Struck during Athens' Golden Age, when great thinkers, writers, and artists flourished in the city. Herodotus, the father of history, lived and wrote in Athens. Socrates, the father of philosophy, taught in the marketplace. Hippocrates, the father of medicine, practiced there. The sculptor Phidias created his great works for the Parthenon on the Acropolis and the Temple of Zeus at Olympia. Democritus envisioned an atomic universe. Aeschylus, Euripedes, Aristophanes, and Sophocles wrote their famous plays and Pindar his Odes. This legacy would continue as, later, Plato would found his Academy outside the walls of Athens in 385 B.C. and, later, Aristotle would found his Lyceum in the city center.
SH57447. Silver tetradrachm, SNG Cop 31, SNG Munchen 49, Kroll 8, Dewing 1611, Gulbenkian 519, HGC 4 1597, SGCV I 2526, gVF, weight 17.081 g, maximum diameter 25.4 mm, die axis 135o, Athens mint, obverse head of Athena right, almond shaped eye, crested helmet with olive leaves and floral scroll, wire necklace, round earring, hair in parallel curves; reverse owl standing right, head facing, erect in posture, olive sprig and crescent left, AΘΕ downward on right, all within incuse square; ex CNG; toned, even light porosity, light graffito on cheek, well centered on a broad flan; SOLD


Ionia, c. 650 - 600 B.C., Striated Type

|Archaic| |Electrum|, |Ionia,| |c.| |650| |-| |600| |B.C.,| |Striated| |Type||Hemihekte| |(1/12| |Stater)|
Mankind's first coin type with an obverse and reverse! Rare and important. The earliest dated coin hoard was deposited in the foundation of the Artemision, the temple of Artemis at Ephesos, as an offering during construction, c. 600 B.C. These earliest coins, which included this type, were struck from electrum, a natural alloy of gold and silver found as nuggets in the rivers and streams of Lydia and Ionia. This striated type is the first type to have an obverse design in addition to the reverse punch. Because of its simple obverse design, it is described by some authorities as the first true coin.
SH84473. Electrum Hemihekte (1/12 Stater), Lydo-Milesian standard; Weidauer 9, Traité I 13, SNGvA 7766, SNG Kayhan 681; Rosen 268; Elektron II 13, Karwiese Artemision Type I.6, EF, some wear to reverse punch, weight 1.078 g, maximum diameter 6.6 mm, Ionia, uncertain mint, c. 650 - 600 B.C.; obverse flattened striated surface; reverse square incuse punch; rare and important; SOLD




  




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REFERENCES

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