Cahill, Nicholas;
Bruce, William;
Kroll, John H;
Frank, Emily B;
Kim, Jennifer;
Castriota, Brian;
Grant, Ameya;
... Erdal, Yilmaz Selim; + view all
(2025)
A New Find of Croeseid Coins from Sardis.
Hesperia: The Journal of the American School of Classical Studies at Athens
, 94
(2)
pp. 143-183.
10.2972/hes.2025.a963374.
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Abstract
Nine silver croeseids were discovered at Sardis, together with bones of their owner, in the historic destruction level of 547 bce, when Cyrus defeated Croesus. All nine are heavily worn, the result of more than 14 years of circulation. This supports Robert Wallace’s argument that Croesus’s reign began in the 580s rather than in 561 bce. The most significant achievement of Croesus’s monetary reform was the introduction of coinage in pure silver, which enhanced the convenience of small change and was quickly adopted throughout the Greek world. Meticulous conservation of the nine croeseids allowed use wear to be distinguished from postdeposition corrosion. The discovery offers new insights into the origins of the world’s first silver coins.
| Type: | Article |
|---|---|
| Title: | A New Find of Croeseid Coins from Sardis |
| Open access status: | An open access version is available from UCL Discovery |
| DOI: | 10.2972/hes.2025.a963374 |
| Publisher version: | https://doi.org/10.2972/hes.2025.a963374 |
| Language: | English |
| Additional information: | This version is the version of record. For information on re-use, please refer to the publisher’s terms and conditions. |
| UCL classification: | UCL UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Dept of History of Art |
| URI: | https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10213568 |
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