Electrum Stater, Cyzicus, 500-450 BCE

Electrum Stater, Cyzicus, 500-450 BCE; Obverse: Helmeted head of Athena over tuna fish.
Electrum Stater, Cyzicus, 500-450 BCE; Reverse: Four-part square incuse punch.
Unidentified Artist, Greek

Type/Object Name: Ob: Helmeted head of Athena over tuna fish. Re: Four-part square incuse punch. 

Dates: 500-450 BCE

Medium: Electrum, Stater

Dimensions: Diameter 19.1 mm, Weight 16.10 g

Credit Line: Courtesy of John Nebel

Notes: Cyzicus was a Greek city on the Sea of Marmara, in northwestern Türkiye. Cyzicus minted coins made of electrum (a gold-silver alloy) through the 4th century BCE, long after other places had switched to solid gold or silver in the 6th century. The obverse of this coin shows the goddess Athena wearing a helmet, with a tuna fish below her. The tuna fish was the symbol of the city Cyzicus, in part because there were large numbers of tuna in the nearby seas, and all of its coins feature a tuna. The reverse of Cyzicus’ coins was often stamped with a four-part incuse punch like this one. This coin was probably worth roughly a year’s wages for an unskilled laborer.

Collection: Coin, John Nebel

Bibliography: Greenwell 25; von Fritze 67; Jameson 2121; Weber 4791.