The history of coins stretches back to the first millennium BC/BCE. Notable examples of coins include the Lydian Lion coins, Persian daric and siglos, Tong Bei, the dirham and gold dinar.
Coins are a major archaeological source of history. Coins convey information about language, administration, religion, economic conditions, and the ruler who minted those coins.[1]
Coins were first made of scraps of metal by hitting a hammer positioned over an anvil. The Chinese produced primarily cast coinage, and this spread to South-East Asia and Japan. Although few non-Chinese cast coins were produced by governments, it was a common practice amongst counterfeiters.
Electrum coin from Ephesus, 650-625 BC. Obverse: Stag grazing right, ΦΑΝΕΩΣ (retrograde). Reverse: Two incuse punches, each with raised intersecting lines. 610–560 BC Lydianelectrum coin denominated as 1⁄3
Early coins
Ephesus' great temple of Artemis has provided evidence for the earliest coins yet known from the ancient world.[nb 1] The first structures in the sanctuary, buried deep under the later temples, date back to the eighth century BCE, and from that time on precious objects were used in the cult or dedicated to the goddess by her worshippers.[3]
The Lydian Lion coins were made of electrum, a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver but of variable precious metal value. The royal lion symbol stamped on the coin, similar to a seal, was a declaration of the value of the contents. These directly preceded ancient Greek coinage, through which Rome begot all Western coinage, and through which the Seleucids, Parthians, and Sassanians begot all Islamic coinage. Indian coinage has largely been a product of Greek, Roman, and Islamic influences.[4] Chinese coinage, though it probably developed independently, was succeeded by Western-style coinage in the late nineteenth century.[5] Other countries in Asia, in Africa, and elsewhere[which?] have adopted the Western approach to coinage as well.
The Lydian Lion was minted by Alyettes of Lydia, 610–560 BC.[6] However, it took some time before ancient coins were used for commerce and trade. Even the smallest-denomination electrum coins, perhaps worth about a day's subsistence, would have been too valuable for buying a loaf of bread.[7] The Trojan Horse had become synonymous with the name of Agamemnon and the symbolism of the horse was stamped on the coins from Cyme in Aeolia, presumably in reference to the power of their lineage. Indeed, the daughter of Agamemnon of Cyme, Hermodike II, is credited with inventing coined money by Julius Pollux after she married King Midas - famed for turning everything he touched into gold.[8]
The most rational explanation of this fable seems to be, that he encouraged his subjects to convert the produce of their agriculture, and other branches of industry, into money, by commerce, whence considerable wealth flowed into his own treasury... though it is more likely, that what the Greeks called invention, was rather the introduction of the knowledge of them [coins] from countries more advanced in civilization.[9]
However, as with all fables, there is a problem with the dates. A real King Mita of Phrygia lived in the 8th century BC[10] but coins were not invented until well after the Phrygian kingdom collapsed. Aylettes’ association with the Midas mythology came about because Lydian electrum came from the river Pactolus in which King Midas supposedly washed away his ability to turn all he touched into gold.[11] Aylettes’ tax revenue may be the real ‘Midas touch’ financing his and his son's, Croesus, conquests. There were some pre-coin types, with no recognisable image, used in the Ionian city of Miletus and the island of Samos[12] but it is noteworthy that the coins from Cyme, when first circulated around 600-550 BC, utilised the symbol of the horse - tying them to the house of Agamemnon and the glory of the Greek victory over Troy. Cyme, being geographically and politically close to Lydia, took their invention of 'nobleman's tax-token' to the citizens - thus making Cyme's rough incuse horse head silver fractions, Hemiobols, a candidate for the title of the Second Oldest coins - and the first used for retailing on a large-scale basis by the Ionian Greeks, quickly spreading Market Economics through the rest of the world.[13] For a timeline graphic showing the progression from pre-coin, to lion, to horsehead imagery on the earliest coins, see Basic Electrum Types.[14]
Double-die style struck coin from Ancient India, c 304-232 BCE featuring an elephant on one face and a lion on the other.
Since that time, coins have been the most universal embodiment of money. These first coins were made of electrum, a naturally occurring pale yellow mixture of gold and silver that was further alloyed with silver and copper.
Silver and gold coins are the most common and universally recognized throughout history, even today. Mints around the world still make millions of gold and silver coins, including the Canadian Silver Maple Leaf, the American Gold Eagle, and the Australian Nugget. Copper, nickel, and other metals are also common, but in lower denominations.
Celtic coinage was minted by the Celts from the late 4th century BC to the mid 1st century AD.
Coins were first made of scraps of metal. Ancient coins were produced through a process of hitting a hammer positioned over an anvil. The rich iconography of the obverse of the early electrum coins contrasts with the dull appearance of their reverse which usually carries only punch marks. The shape and number of these punches varied according to their denomination and weight-standard.[16]
Ionia, Uncertain city (possibly Kyme, Aeolis) 600-550 BCE, Hemiobol. Horse head, rough incuseElectrum coin from Ephesus, 520-500 BCE. Obverse: Forepart of stag. Reverse: Square incuse punchGreek drachma of Aegina. Obverse: Land turtle / Reverse: ΑΙΓ(INA) and dolphin. The oldest turtle coin dates 500 BCE
The earliest coins have a “rough incuse” where the hammer was beaten directly onto the reverse. Later technology used a “punch”, often a “square incuse”, to improve the aim of the hammer - sometimes resulting in a swastika pattern. Punches developed to bear the mark of the minter and finally to have their own design - leading to double sided coins. For a timeline graphic showing the progression from rough incuse to patterned reverses, see Basic Electrum Types.[17] Some lion coins are completely covered by countermarks, in some cases more than ten. These marks were probably applied by moneychangers and bankers to coins that they considered of correct weight and alloy (counterfeits were not uncommon). If these coins came into their hands again, they would recognise their marks and have no need to test the coins again.[18]
The Chinese produced primarily cast coinage, and this spread to South-East Asia and Japan. Relatively few non-Chinese cast coins were produced by governments, however it was a common practice amongst counterfeiters. Since the early 18th century and before, presses (normally referred to as mills in coin collecting circles) have been used in the west, beginning with screw presses and progressing in the 19th century towards steam driven presses. The first of these presses were developed in France and Germany, and quickly spread to Britain. Modern minting techniques use electric and hydraulic presses.
The type of mintage method (being hammered, milled or cast) does limit the materials which can be used for the coin. For example, antimony coins, (which are very rare) are nearly always cast examples, because of the brittle nature of the metal, and thus it would break if deformed, which is a key part of the milling and hammering process.
↑ Neiburger and Spohn, writing in Central States Archaeological Journal (October 2007) posit that fragments of hammered copper of irregular shape (which they refer to as ingots), dating from approximately 7,500 BC and found around Michigan and Wisconsin, which are often assumed to be 'scrap or damaged pieces not fit for implement manufacture', were in fact used as primitive coins.[2] Their claim is based on the size and shape of the ingots accurately corresponding to that of the majority of other coinage used throughout history, but their evidence is speculative, and their claims have not been widely accepted by other researchers.
Related Research Articles
A coin is a small object, usually round and flat, used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order to facilitate trade. They are most often issued by a government. Coins often have images, numerals, or text on them. The faces of coins or medals are sometimes called the obverse and the reverse, referring to the front and back sides, respectively. The obverse of a coin is commonly called heads, because it often depicts the head of a prominent person, and the reverse is known as tails.
Lydia was an Iron Age kingdom of western Asia Minor located generally east of ancient Ionia in the modern western Turkish provinces of Uşak, Manisa and inland Izmir. The ethnic group inhabiting this kingdom are known as the Lydians, and their language, known as Lydian, was a member of the Anatolian branch of the Indo-European language family. The capital of Lydia was Sardis.
Electrum is a naturally occurring alloy of gold and silver, with trace amounts of copper and other metals. Its color ranges from pale to bright yellow, depending on the proportions of gold and silver. It has been produced artificially and is also known as "green gold".
Croesus was the king of Lydia, who reigned from 585 BC until his defeat by the Persian king Cyrus the Great in 547 or 546 BC. According to Herodotus, he reigned 14 years.
Roman currency for most of Roman history consisted of gold, silver, bronze, orichalcum and copper coinage. From its introduction during the Republic, in the third century BC, through Imperial times, Roman currency saw many changes in form, denomination, and composition. A persistent feature was the inflationary debasement and replacement of coins over the centuries. Notable examples of this followed the reforms of Diocletian. This trend continued with Byzantine currency.
The history of ancient Greek coinage can be divided into four periods: the Archaic, the Classical, the Hellenistic and the Roman. The Archaic period extends from the introduction of coinage to the Greek world during the 7th century BC until the Persian Wars in about 480 BC. The Classical period then began, and lasted until the conquests of Alexander the Great in about 330 BC, which began the Hellenistic period, extending until the Roman absorption of the Greek world in the 1st century BC. The Greek cities continued to produce their own coins for several more centuries under Roman rule. The coins produced during this period are called Roman provincial coins or Greek Imperial Coins.
A mint is an industrial facility which manufactures coins that can be used as currency.
Phocaea or Phokaia was an ancient Ionian Greek city on the western coast of Anatolia. Greek colonists from Phocaea founded the colony of Massalia in 600 BC, Emporion in 575 BC and Elea in 540 BC.
The daric was a gold coin which, along with a similar silver coin, the siglos, represented the bimetallic monetary standard of the Achaemenid Empire.
The stater was an ancient coin used in various regions of Greece. The term is also used for similar coins, imitating Greek staters, minted elsewhere in ancient Europe.
The earliest coinage of Asia is also the oldest coinage of the world. Coins were invented several times independently of each other. The earliest coins from the Mediterranean region are from the kingdom of Lydia, and are now dated ca. 600 BCE. The dating of the earliest coins of China and India is difficult and the subject of debate. Nevertheless, the first coins of China are at least as old as the earliest Lydian coins and possibly older, while the earliest coins of India seems to have appeared at a later stage.
Silver coins are considered the oldest mass-produced form of coinage. Silver has been used as a coinage metal since the times of the Greeks; their silver drachmas were popular trade coins. The ancient Persians used silver coins between 612–330 BC. Before 1797, British pennies were made of silver.
The Achaemenid Empire issued coins from 520 BC–450 BC to 330 BC. The Persian daric was the first gold coin which, along with a similar silver coin, the siglos represented the first bimetallic monetary standard. It seems that before the Persians issued their own coinage, a continuation of Lydian coinage under Persian rule is likely. Achaemenid coinage includes the official imperial issues, as well as coins issued by the Achaemenid provincial governors (satraps), such as those stationed in Asia Minor.
Cyme or Cumae was an Aeolian city in Aeolis close to the kingdom of Lydia. It was called Phriconian, perhaps from the mountain Phricion in Aeolis, near which the Aeolians had been settled before their migration to Asia.
The coinage metals comprise those metallic chemical elements and alloys which have been used to mint coins. Historically, most coinage metals are from the three nonradioactive members of group 11 of the periodic table: copper, silver and gold. Copper is usually augmented with tin or other metals to form bronze. Gold, silver and bronze or copper were the principal coinage metals of the ancient world, the medieval period and into the late modern period when the diversity of coinage metals increased. While coins are primarily made from metal, some non-metallic materials have also been used.
Carthaginian or Punic currency refers to the coins of ancient Carthage, a Phoenician city-state located near present-day Tunis, Tunisia. Between the late fifth century BC and its destruction in 146 BC, Carthage produced a wide range of coinage in gold, electrum, silver, billon, and bronze. The base denomination was the shekel, probably pronounced in Punic. Only a minority of Carthaginian coinage was produced or used in North Africa. Instead, the majority derive from Carthage's holdings in Sardinia and western Sicily.
Hermodike II has been attributed with inventing coinage by Aristotle. Other historians have translated the name as Hermodice, Damodice or Demodike as translated by Julius Pollux.
The Kabul hoard, also called the Chaman Hazouri, Chaman Hazouri or Tchamani-i Hazouri hoard, is a coin hoard discovered in the vicinity of Kabul, Afghanistan in 1933. The collection contained numerous Achaemenid coins as well as many Greek coins from the 5th and 4th centuries BCE. Approximately one thousand coins were counted in the hoard. The deposit of the hoard is dated to approximately 380 BCE, as this is the probable date of the least ancient datable coin found in the hoard.
The Croeseid, anciently Kroiseioi stateres, was a type of coin, either in gold or silver, which was minted in Sardis by the king of Lydia Croesus from around 550 BC. Croesus is credited with issuing the first true gold coins with a standardised purity for general circulation, and the world's first bimetallic monetary system.
Wappenmünzen are the earliest attested form of Athenian coinage, minted in Ancient Athens under the Peisistratids during the late 6th century BCE. The term refers to an array of silver and electrum coinage minted prior to the use of the Owl of Athena, an emblematic design used on all later Athenian coinage. Initially interpreted by numismatists as the heraldic devices of Athenian noble families, the varied designs of the wappenmünzen are now generally thought to represent individual mint magistrates, in line with contemporary practices in East Greek coinage. In contrast to later Athenian silver coins, the wappenmünzen were minted from imported silver, predating the Classical expansion of the Laurion Mines.
↑ "Hoards, Small Change, and the Origin of Coinage," Journal of the Hellenistic Studies 84 (1964), p. 89
↑ The Mycenaean Origin of Greek Mythology, Martin Persson Nilsson, University of California Press, 1972, pg48
↑ Annals of Commerce, Manufactures, Fisheries, and Navigation, with Brief Notices of the Arts and Sciences Connected with Them. Containing the Commercial Transactions of the British Empire and Other Countries ... with a Large Appendix ... with a General Chronological Index ... 1805 ... by David Macpherson. In Four Volumes. Vol. 1.(-4.), Volume 1, pg 16
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