Cretan Stater

Cretan coins, often labeled as staters, frequently featured bold depictions of bulls or labyrinthine patterns, drawing on Minoan artistic traditions despite being minted centuries later. These silver pieces, likely produced by city-states like Knossos from around the 5th century BC onward, served as straightforward currency in trade networks across the Mediterranean. We can't confirm a continuous minting from 600 BC as suggested; early Greek coinage on Crete probably started later, with Roman influences possibly extending to 67 BC or beyond.

What we do know is patchy—archaeological finds show variations in weight and design, but no definitive records survive. Some experts speculate these coins influenced later Hellenistic types, though that's unproven. As for myths about Minoan kings using them, well, that's as reliable as a scratched die.