The Hirmer publishing house gave me this slide of a coin of Kyzikos dated approximately 350 BC. The city with its two harbors on the Sea of Marmara minted in high quality electron from 550 to 333 BC until Alexander III conquered Asia Minor.The electron coinage of Kyzikos shared the same importance as the currency of Athens during this period. The coins of Kyzikos were very valuable and were an accepted currency all over the Ancient world. One could compare them to the American dollar of the 20th century. In the inventories of the temple of Pallas Athene we find the exchange rates: A stater of Kyzikos was worth 24 Athenian tetradrachms. They were made of an artificial electrum alloy although no one questioned the amount of gold or silver it was made of. The staters of Kyzikos appeared either pale, yellowish or reddish according to the alloy. For their economic value, however, this wasn't important. One knew that the trading partners would accept this money, the same as we accept a credit card today. The coins of Kyzikos were thus a convenient currency "par excellence". A surprising fact in that period. Kyzikos was part of the Persian Empire which was organized as a confederation, by the way the only one in Antiquity. The coinage of Kyzikos is proof of the liberal administration of the Persian Empire, which left local matters to local authorities.