Real coins·15 May 2026·4 min read
The Persian daric — the Great King's gold
The gold coin of the Persian Empire, with the royal archer, was the money of the ancient superpower.
The Persian Empire struck the gold daric, showing the king as a kneeling archer. It was so pure (over 95% gold) that it became the reference currency of the Near East.
The gold that bought armies
The Persians used darics not only for trade but as a political weapon: bribing Greek cities and paying mercenaries. Money was, even then, a form of power as strong as the sword.
