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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;AncientJoe, post: 1961450, member: 44357&quot;]<img src="http://i1028.photobucket.com/albums/y342/AncientJoe/Ephesus_zps022b7afe.jpg" class="bbCodeImage wysiwygImage" alt="" unselectable="on" /></p><p><br /></p><p>While second nature today, the original use for the earliest coinage is still unknown. It is unlikely that the first person to put an image on a small piece of metal realized that they would change the world forever, starting a substantial departure from millennia-old customs of trade.</p><p><br /></p><p>During the excavation of the famous Temple of Artemis in Ephesus (present day Turkey near the Black Sea), a group of coins was found which are thought to comprise its “foundation deposit”, believed to prevent the building from falling into ruin.</p><p><br /></p><p>The largest type in the group, a stater, had an inscription stating “I am the badge of Phanes”. As the earliest coinage was believed to be made by private citizens outside of government control, it is speculated that Phanes was a wealthy merchant, guaranteeing the coin value with his name, although his true identity is unknown.</p><p><br /></p><p>Trites of the same type also bear the name of Phanes but the smaller denominations are without any inscription. They are instead identified stylistically due to the same spotted stag, shown grazing on the stater and with a turned head on the fractional coins.</p><p><br /></p><p>The stag allows this coin to be attributed to Ephesus as Artemis, the patron goddess of the city, chose the stag as her sacred animal.</p><p><br /></p><p>Whether they were originally intended to be used to appease the gods, pay mercenaries, or to fund city projects, coins revolutionized commerce. As our modern world becomes increasingly digital, the concepts pioneered by the first coins still make up the backbone of trade, offering an accessible, neutral medium through which transactions can be processed quickly and fairly.</p><p><br /></p><p><i>IONIA, Ephesos. Electrum 1/24th stater. ca.625-600BC, 6mm, 0.6g. Forepart of a stag advancing right with head facing left. 3 ovals on chest. / Incuse punch with raised lines within. BMC Ionia -; Rosen -; Traité -; Weidauer -. Very rare unpublished variety with three ovals on the stag. Nearly extremely fine.</i>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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