Paktye

Topography and History

Paktye lay at the entrance to the propontian side of the Thracian Chersonese;¹ it was founded by Militiades,² whose wall ran between Paktye and Kardia to protect the Chersonese.³ The exact location is unknown to this day.⁴ The grave of Helle was purported to have been located in the vicinity of the city.⁵ According to Diodorus Siculus, Alcibiades withdrew from this location in 408 BC.⁶

Minting System and Typology

The coinage of this city was apparently not very extensive, as a bronze type from there had only first become known a few years ago.⁷ The motif on this coin was based on a bronze emission of Kardia. A lion’s head to the left appears on the obverse, while a horizontal barley-grain with the city ethnic and a shell appear on the reverse. The diameter of this type is between 10–12 mm, and the weight is around 1 g. The coinage dates back to the time before the destruction of Kardia in 309 BC, though Randig suggests a date between 372–325 BC.⁸

Our type catalogue represents the state of research from August 2019 and does not take into consideration any coin types that have become known later. Further information, especially about new types, is always welcome.