Axos — known in antiquity as Oaxos — was one of the older Cretan poleis, situated inland on the western slopes of Mount Ida. It struck its own silver coinage independently at a time when many smaller Cretan cities were content to use the issues of Knossos or Gortyna. The city's mint output was never large, and surviving drachms attributable to this series are genuinely scarce in any condition.
The BMC Crete reference places Axos among a handful of inland Cretan mints whose civic identity was assertive enough to sustain independent coinage through the fourth century.
Axos — known in antiquity as Oaxos — was one of the older Cretan poleis, situated inland on the western slopes of Mount Ida. It struck its own silver coinage independently at a time when many smaller Cretan cities were content to use the issues of Knossos or Gortyna. The city's mint output was never large, and surviving drachms attributable to this series are genuinely scarce in any condition.
The BMC Crete reference places Axos among a handful of inland Cretan mints whose civic identity was assertive enough to sustain independent coinage through the fourth century.