Ancient Greece - AR Diobol - Miletos, Ionia - Circa 550-494

Denomination:  Diobol (1/12 Stater)                                                  Date: 550 - 494 BCE Mint: Melitos, Ionia                                                                            Mount: 18k gold Description: Miletos, Ionia, AR Diobol. Late 6th century BC.  Obverse: Lion's head right Reverse: Floral star pattern in incuse square.                                                                                                                               History: This is one of the most well-known Greek coin types of the archaic period, minted in the region of Ionia from about 550 BCE until 494 BCE, when Miletus fell to the Persians. The ancient Greek city of Miletus in Asia Minor was located on what is now the west coast of Turkey.  In the century before Athens rose to prominence, this was the intellectual and commercial center of the Greek world.  As home of Thales, the “father of philosophy,” it has been called the birthplace of the modern world.  The lion head