Turtle ancient Greek coin Aegina copy Earring sterling silver Mythological Tortoise Coin

Handmade jewelry to be enjoyed for a lifetime. A personal treasure that is embedded with history. Filled with symbols and meanings, ancient Greek jewelry and coins feature legendary Gods, Heroes, mythology, A joy in vibrantly representing nature and a love of flowing, expressive, shapes and forms.
1.141x0.511 inch - 29x13 mm
Drachma of Aegina, 404–340 BC. Obverse: Land tortoise. Reverse: inscription ΑΙΓ[ΙΝΑΤΟΝ] ([of the] Aeg[inetans]) "Aegina" and dolphin.
The island of Aegina was the earliest state in European Greece to adopt the use of coined money. Ancient tradition, which ascribed to Pheidon, king of Argos, the credit of having been the first to strike coins in this island, is perhaps due to the undisputed priority over all other coins of European Greece of the oldest staters of the Turtle type. Coins in the form of tokens first appeared in the area of the east Aegean during the second half of the 7th c. BC, as is clear from the excavations at the temple of Artemis at Ephesus. The invention was carried by Aeginetans to their homeland: Aegina was the first of the Greek cities to strike coins (after 570 BC). Aeginetan staters with a depiction of the sea turtle, which were known as chelones, were struck in great quantities in the 6th c. BC and circulated widely in Greece, in Thessaly, Boeotia, the Peloponnese, the Cyclades, and Crete, and also in the East, as is clear from the study of hoards. The Aeginitenan drachm was called the "thick drachm" by the Athenians, since the Aeginitenan standard was heavier than that of Athens. The source of raw material for these staters was probably the island of Siphnos, whose silver mines were at the height of their production in the 6th c. BC. The "turtles" (chelones) of Aegina, along with the "owls" (glaukes) of Athens and the "asses" (poloi) of Corinth, were the international currencies of the antiquity. Since antiquity, Tortoises were the symbol of the Greek Island of Aegina and were minted on their currency, with coins dating back to 7 BC. Aegina chose the turtle as its symbol because it was the symbol of Aphrodite, whose temple stood on the island. In fact, some scholars believe that the money was originally issued by the Temple of Aphrodite. The Tortoise is an attribute to her and also a symbol of fertility.


A personal treasure that is embedded with history each coin is imprinted by ancient hand with Gods and Goddesses, Emperors and Mythical Creators.

Filled with symbols and meanings, ancient Greek coins are some of the first coins ever minted, and feature legendary Gods, Heroes, classical art, and unique, subtle details that celebrate the civilization that still impacts us every day. Browse our collection of Ancient Greek coin jewelry and meet Alexander the Great, Athena and her Owl of Wisdom, Hercules and the Lion, the Boy on the Dolphin, Zeus, Helios and more. Ancient Art Greek jewelry direct from our workshop in Athens

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