The first coins of the Cypriote kingdoms were of silver and were issued in the later part of the sixth century.

They follow a common Cypriote weight standard based on a shekel of approximately 11.20 grammes and divided into thirds, sixths, twelfths etc. The fact that the weight standard used in Cyprus was independent of that used in other parts of the Persian empire is an indication of the internal independence of the kingdoms and of the absence of direct Achaemenid influence and control.

In the fourth century several developments in the structure of the coinages are attested: large silver denominations seem to give way to smaller silver fractions (most commonly thirds or sixths); at the same time coinages in gold and in bronze are minted as well.

Furthermore, while some kingdoms retained the Cypriote weight standard, others replaced it with a reduced standard, the so-called 'Rhodian', following other areas of the east such as Caria, probably to facilitate trade or to find a solution to the decline in silver stocks.

Dating the coins

Although many details of the dating, attribution and interpretation of the Cypriote coinages remain uncertain, much progress has been made in recent years. For example, the detection of overstrikes, whether on imported coins or on local ones, has helped to narrow down both the relative and the absolute dating of many issues.

At the same time the evidence of hoards either complements such conclusions, or permits the attribution of a coin or a group of coins to a particular mint. Hoard evidence can be revealing in other ways too, especially with regard to circulation within and beyond the island: coins of the Cypriote kingdoms have been found beyond the borders of their kingdoms but also in many parts of the former Achaemenid empire: in Phoenicia, Cilicia, Pamphylia, Jordan, and as far east as Afghanistan.

Iconography

The iconography of the royal coinages of Cypriote varies from kingdom to kingdom, and often from king to king. While in the fifth century the coin types are mostly animals (though with exceptions, for example the coins of Lapethos showing Phrixos and Europa), in the fourth century a range of Greek divinities appears, such as Athena, Apollo, Zeus and Aphrodite, assimilated with the local gods.

The Greek hero Herakles is a very common image on Cypriote coins and we find him (for almost two centuries) on the obverse of the coins of the kings of Kition, where he is assimilated with the Phoenician god Melqart. In Cyprus Herakles seems to have been considered more of a god than a hero.

Other elements borrowed from areas like Egypt or Phoenicia are also perceptible on Cypriote coins. A very common symbol is the ankh (the Egyptian symbol of eternal life) that appears as the main reverse type on the early coins of Salamis, but also as an additional symbol on other Cypriote mints (Paphos, Marion), while the Phoenician sign of Tanit (a complex sign indicating the principal feminine goddess of the pantheon), can be seen on the coinage of king Punayyaton (Pumiathon) of Kition.