Athens Attica Athena and Owl Silver Tetradrachm set in 14k Gold

Pendant Size: 3.5 cm – 1.4" Inches – By – 2.5 cm – 1" Inch

Total Weight: 22.1 Grams.

Obverse: Helmeted head of Athena

Reverse:  An owl, an olive twig, and the letters AOE in the right field; the letters AOE translate to “Of The Athenians.”

It is believed that the Athenian Owl Silver Tetradrachm is the very first International Trade Coin! First minted around 510 to 480 BC, these heavy silver coins were very influential in the Ancient World and are some of the most appreciated and respected of all Ancient Coinage today.

 Athena, daughter of Zeus, represented both Wisdom and Warfare to the early Greeks. She was also the patron goddess of Athens, after whom she is named. The owl was Athena’s mascot and a symbol of wisdom. Many succeeding cultures considered Athens the cradle of civilization.

These coins were extremely important – not in daily commerce, but in doing the most important financial transactions of the day. They financed wars, paid for armies, and paid for the building of major Ancient World buildings and projects – such as the Parthenon in Greece. They paid for the festival of Dionysus, They were demanded as a tribute and for payment of taxes to foreign rulers.

The coins became so prominent in the Ancient World that many civilizations adopted an owl as a symbol on their coinage. Even Sparta, Athens’ main enemy, and rival, produced similar-looking coins with Athena and owls on them.

These coins were issued with various minor die changes for approximately 500 years! Even Teddy Roosevelt was inspired, when he became President, to have the high-relief style and classical look of the Greek and Roman coins. He owned a high-relief Athenian Owl coin, and that was part of his inspiration to redesign American coins.