The drachma ( el,

δραχμή The drachma ( el, wikt:δραχμή, δραχμή , ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history: # An Ancient Greece, ancient Greek currency unit issued by many Greek city states du ...

, ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the

currency A currency, "in circulation", from la, currens, -entis, literally meaning "running" or "traversing" is a standardization of money in any form, in use or circulation as a medium of exchange, for example banknotes and coins. A more general def ...

used in

Greece Greece,, or , romanized: ', officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the southern tip of the Balkans, and is located at the crossroads of Europe, Asia, and Africa. Greece shares land borders with ...

during several periods in its history: # An

ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic peri ...

currency unit issued by many

Greek city states Greek may refer to: Greece Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group. *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family. **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...

during a period of ten centuries, from the Archaic period throughout the Classical period, the

Hellenistic period In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in 3 ...

up to the

Roman period The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

under Greek Imperial Coinage. # Three

modern Greek Modern Greek (, , or , ''Kiní Neoellinikí Glóssa''), generally referred to by speakers simply as Greek (, ), refers collectively to the dialects of the Greek language spoken in the modern era, including the official standardized form of the ...

currencies, the first introduced in 1832 by the Greek King Otto () and the last replaced by the

euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

in 2001 (at the rate of 340.75 drachmae to the euro). The euro did not begin circulating until 2001 but the exchange rate was fixed on 19 June 2000, with legal introduction of the euro taking place in January 2002. It was also a small unit of weight..

Ancient drachma

The name ''drachma'' is derived from the verb (, "(I) grasp"). It is believed that the same word with the meaning of "handful" or "handle" is found in

Linear B Linear B was a syllabic script used for writing in Mycenaean Greek, the earliest attested form of Greek. The script predates the Greek alphabet by several centuries. The oldest Mycenaean writing dates to about 1400 BC. It is descended from ...

tablets of the Mycenean

Pylos Pylos (, ; el, Πύλος), historically also known as Navarino, is a town and a former municipality in Messenia, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part of the municipality Pylos-Nestoras, of which it is th ...

. Initially a drachma was a fistful (a "grasp") of six ''oboloí'' or ''obeloí'' (metal sticks, literally " spits") used as a form of currency as early as 1100 BC and being a form of "bullion": bronze, copper, or iron ingots denominated by weight. A

hoard A hoard or "wealth deposit" is an archaeological term for a collection of valuable objects or artifacts, sometimes purposely buried in the ground, in which case it is sometimes also known as a cache. This would usually be with the intention of ...

of over 150 rod-shaped obeloi was uncovered at

Heraion of Argos The Heraion of Argos ( el, Ἡραῖον Ἄργους) is an ancient temple in Argos, Greece. It was part of the greatest sanctuary in the Argolid, dedicated to Hera, whose epithet "Argive Hera" (Ἥρη Ἀργείη ''Here Argeie'') appears ...

Peloponnese The Peloponnese (), Peloponnesus (; el, Πελοπόννησος, Pelopónnēsos,(), or Morea is a peninsula and geographic regions of Greece, geographic region in southern Greece. It is connected to the central part of the country by the Isthmu ...

. Six of them are displayed at the

Numismatic Museum of Athens Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

. It was the standard unit of silver coinage at most ancient Greek mints, and the name ''obol'' was used to describe a coin that was one-sixth of a drachma. The notion that ''drachma'' derived from the word for fistful was recorded by Herakleides of Pontos (387–312 BC) who was informed by the priests of Heraion that

Pheidon Pheidon (Greek: Φείδων) was an Argive ruler during the 7th century BCE and 10th in line to Temenus. He was arguably Argos's most ambitious and successful ruler during the 7th century BCE. There is a possibility that there were in fact two di ...

, king of Argos, dedicated rod-shaped obeloi to Heraion. Similar information about Pheidon's obeloi was also recorded at the

Parian Chronicle The Parian Chronicle or Parian Marble ( la, Marmor Parium, Mar. Par.) is a Greek chronology, covering the years from 1582 BC to 299 BC, inscribed on a stele. Found on the island of Paros in two sections, and sold in Smyrna in the early 17 ...

Ancient Greek coins Ancient history is a time period from the beginning of writing and recorded human history to as far as late antiquity. The span of recorded history is roughly 5,000 years, beginning with the Sumerian cuneiform script. Ancient history cove ...

normally had distinctive names in daily use. The Athenian

tetradrachm The tetradrachm ( grc-gre, τετράδραχμον, tetrádrachmon) was a large silver coin that originated in Ancient Greece. It was nominally equivalent to four Greek drachma, drachmae. Over time the tetradrachm effectively became the standard ...

was called

owl Owls are birds from the order Strigiformes (), which includes over 200 species of mostly solitary and nocturnal birds of prey typified by an upright stance, a large, broad head, binocular vision, binaural hearing, sharp talons, and feathers a ...

, the Aeginetic stater was called chelone, the Corinthian

stater The stater (; grc, , , statḗr, weight) was an ancient coin used in various regions of Ancient Greece, Greece. The term is also used for similar coins, imitating Greek staters, minted elsewhere in ancient Europe. History The stater, as a Gr ...

was called ''hippos'' (

horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...

) and so on. Each city would mint its own and have them stamped with recognizable symbols of the city, known as

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fi ...

in numismatics, along with suitable inscriptions, and they would often be referred to either by the name of the city or of the image depicted. The exact exchange value of each was determined by the quantity and quality of the metal, which reflected on the reputation of each mint. Among the Greek cities that used the drachma were: Abdera, Abydos,

Alexandria Alexandria ( or ; ar, ٱلْإِسْكَنْدَرِيَّةُ ; grc-gre, Αλεξάνδρεια, Alexándria) is the second largest city in Egypt, and the largest city on the Mediterranean coast. Founded in by Alexander the Great, Alexandria ...

Aetna Aetna Inc. () is an American managed health care company that sells traditional and consumer directed health care insurance and related services, such as medical, pharmaceutical, dental, behavioral health, long-term care, and disability plans, ...

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; grc-gre, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου, ''Antiókheia hē epì Oróntou'', Learned ; also Syrian Antioch) grc-koi, Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπὶ Ὀρόντου; or Ἀντιόχεια ἡ ἐπ� ...

Athens Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

Chios Chios (; el, Χίος, Chíos , traditionally known as Scio in English) is the fifth largest Greek island, situated in the northern Aegean Sea. The island is separated from Turkey by the Chios Strait. Chios is notable for its exports of mastic ...

Cyzicus Cyzicus (; grc, Κύζικος ''Kúzikos''; ota, آیدینجق, ''Aydıncıḳ'') was an ancient Greek town in Mysia in Anatolia in the current Balıkesir Province of Turkey. It was located on the shoreward side of the present Kapıdağ Peni ...

Corinth Corinth ( ; el, Κόρινθος, Kórinthos, ) is the successor to an ancient city, and is a former municipality in Corinthia, Peloponnese, which is located in south-central Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform, it has been part o ...

Ephesus Ephesus (; grc-gre, Ἔφεσος, Éphesos; tr, Efes; may ultimately derive from hit, 𒀀𒉺𒊭, Apaša) was a city in ancient Greece on the coast of Ionia, southwest of present-day Selçuk in İzmir Province, Turkey. It was built in t ...

Eretria Eretria (; el, Ερέτρια, , grc, Ἐρέτρια, , literally 'city of the rowers') is a town in Euboea, Greece, facing the coast of Attica across the narrow South Euboean Gulf. It was an important Greek polis in the 6th and 5th centur ...

Gela Gela (Sicilian and ; grc, Γέλα) is a city and (municipality) in the Autonomous Region of Sicily, Italy; in terms of area and population, it is the largest municipality on the southern coast of Sicily. Gela is part of the Province of Cal ...

Catana Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

Kos Kos or Cos (; el, Κως ) is a Greek island, part of the Dodecanese island chain in the southeastern Aegean Sea. Kos is the third largest island of the Dodecanese by area, after Rhodes and Karpathos; it has a population of 36,986 (2021 census), ...

, Maronia,

Naxos Naxos (; el, Νάξος, ) is a Greek island and the largest of the Cyclades. It was the centre of archaic Cycladic culture. The island is famous as a source of emery, a rock rich in corundum, which until modern times was one of the best abr ...

Pella Pella ( el, Πέλλα) is an ancient city located in Central Macedonia, Greece. It is best-known for serving as the capital city of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon, and was the birthplace of Alexander the Great. On site of the ancient cit ...

Pergamum Pergamon or Pergamum ( or ; grc-gre, Πέργαμον), also referred to by its modern Greek form Pergamos (), was a rich and powerful ancient Greek city in Mysia. It is located from the modern coastline of the Aegean Sea on a promontory on th ...

Rhegion Reggio di Calabria ( scn, label= Southern Calabrian, Riggiu; el, label=Calabrian Greek, Ρήγι, Rìji), usually referred to as Reggio Calabria, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, is the largest city in Calabria. It has an estimated popula ...

, Salamis, Smyrni,

Sparta Sparta ( Doric Greek: Σπάρτα, ''Spártā''; Attic Greek: Σπάρτη, ''Spártē'') was a prominent city-state in Laconia, in ancient Greece. In antiquity, the city-state was known as Lacedaemon (, ), while the name Sparta referre ...

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

, Tarsus,

Thasos Thasos or Thassos ( el, Θάσος, ''Thásos'') is a Greek island in the North Aegean Sea. It is the northernmost major Greek island, and 12th largest by area. The island has an area of and a population of about 13,000. It forms a separate re ...

Tenedos Tenedos (, ''Tenedhos'', ), or Bozcaada in Turkish language, Turkish, is an island of Turkey in the northeastern part of the Aegean Sea. Administratively, the island constitutes the Bozcaada, Çanakkale, Bozcaada district of Çanakkale Provinc ...

Troy Troy ( el, Τροία and Latin: Troia, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒋫𒊒𒄿𒊭 ''Truwiša'') or Ilion ( el, Ίλιον and Latin: Ilium, Hittite language, Hittite: 𒃾𒇻𒊭 ''Wiluša'') was an ancient city located at Hisarlik in prese ...

and more. The 5th century BC

Athenian Athens ( ; el, Αθήνα, Athína ; grc, Ἀθῆναι, Athênai (pl.) ) is both the capital and largest city of Greece. With a population close to four million, it is also the seventh largest city in the European Union. Athens dominates ...

tetradrachm ("four drachmae")

coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

was perhaps the most widely used coin in the Greek world prior to the time of

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, wikt:Ἀλέξανδρος, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the Ancient Greece, ancient Greek kingdom of Maced ...

(along with the

ian

). It featured the helmeted profile bust of

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded as the patron and protectress of ...

on the obverse (front) and an owl on the reverse (back). In daily use they were called ''glaukes'' (owls), hence the proverb , 'an owl to Athens', referring to something that was in plentiful supply, like '

coals to Newcastle Selling, carrying, bringing, or taking coal(s) to Newcastle is an idiom of United Kingdom, British origin describing a pointless action.Greek 1 euro coin. Drachmae were minted on different weight standards at different Greek mints. The standard that came to be most commonly used was the Athenian or Attic one, which weighed a little over 4.3 grams. After Alexander's conquests, the name ''drachma'' was used in many of the

Hellenistic In Classical antiquity, the Hellenistic period covers the time in Mediterranean history after Classical Greece, between the death of Alexander the Great in 323 BC and the emergence of the Roman Empire, as signified by the Battle of Actium in ...

kingdoms in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

, including the

Ptolemaic Ptolemaic is the adjective formed from the name Ptolemy, and may refer to: Pertaining to the Ptolemaic dynasty * Ptolemaic dynasty, the Macedonian Greek dynasty that ruled Egypt founded in 305 BC by Ptolemy I Soter * Ptolemaic Kingdom Pertaining ...

kingdom in

and the

Parthian Empire The Parthian Empire (), also known as the Arsacid Empire (), was a major Iranian political and cultural power in ancient Iran from 247 BC to 224 AD. Its latter name comes from its founder, Arsaces I, who led the Parni tribe in conque ...

based in what is modern-day

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran, and also called Persia, is a country located in Western Asia. It is bordered by Iraq and Turkey to the west, by Azerbaijan and Armenia to the northwest, by the Caspian Sea and Turkmeni ...

. The

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

unit of currency known as ''

dirham The dirham, dirhem or dirhm ( ar, درهم) is a silver unit of currency historically and currently used by several Arab and Arab influenced states. The term has also been used as a related unit of mass. Unit of mass The dirham was a un ...

'' ( ar, درهم), known from pre-

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic Monotheism#Islam, monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God in Islam, God (or ...

ic times and afterwards, inherited its name from the drachma or

didrachm The drachma ( el, δραχμή , ; pl. ''drachmae'' or ''drachmas'') was the currency used in Greece during several periods in its history: # An ancient Greek currency unit issued by many Greek city states during a period of ten centuries, fro ...

(, 2 drachmae); the dirham is still the name of the official currencies of

Morocco Morocco (),, ) officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is the westernmost country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It overlooks the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to ...

and the

United Arab Emirates The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

. The

Armenian dram The dram ( hy, դրամ; sign: ֏; abbreviation: դր.; ISO code: AMD) is the currency of Armenia, and is also used in the neighboring unrecognized Republic of Artsakh. It was historically subdivided into 100 luma (). The Central Bank of Armen ...

( hy, Դրամ) also derives its name from the drachma.

Value

It is difficult to estimate comparative exchange rates with modern currency because the range of products produced by economies of centuries gone by were different from today, which makes purchasing power parity (PPP) calculations very difficult; however, some historians and economists have estimated that in the 5th century BC a drachma had a rough value of 25

U.S. dollars The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

(in the year 1990 – equivalent to US$46.50 in 2015), whereas classical historians regularly say that in the heyday of ancient Greece (the fifth and fourth centuries) the daily wage for a skilled worker or a

hoplite Hoplites ( ) ( grc, ὁπλίτης : hoplítēs) were citizen-soldiers of Ancient Greece, Ancient Greek Polis, city-states who were primarily armed with spears and shields. Hoplite soldiers used the phalanx formation to be effective in war with ...

was one drachma, and for a heliast (juror) half a drachma since 425 BC. Modern commentators derived from

Xenophon Xenophon of Athens (; grc, wikt:Ξενοφῶν, Ξενοφῶν ; – probably 355 or 354 BC) was a Greek military leader, philosopher, and historian, born in Athens. At the age of 30, Xenophon was elected commander of one of the biggest Anci ...

that half a drachma per day (360 days per year) would provide "a comfortable subsistence" for "the poor citizens" (for the head of a household in 355 BC). Earlier in 422 BC, we also see in Aristophanes (''Wasps'', line 300–302) that the daily half-drachma of a juror is just enough for the daily subsistence of a family of three. A modern person might think of one drachma as the rough equivalent of a skilled worker's daily pay in the place where they live, which could be as low as US$1, or as high as $100, depending on the country. Fractions and multiples of the drachma were minted by many states, most notably in Ptolemaic Egypt, which minted large coins in gold, silver and bronze. Notable Ptolemaic coins included the gold ''pentadrachm'' and ''octadrachm'', and silver ''tetradrachm'', ''decadrachm'' and ''pentakaidecadrachm''. This was especially noteworthy as it would not be until the introduction of the

Guldengroschen The ''Guldengroschen'' or ''Guldiner'' was a large silver coin originally minted in Tirol in 1486, but which was introduced into the Duchy of Saxony in 1500. The name "''Guldengroschen''" came from the fact that it has an equivalent denominati ...

in 1486 that coins of substantial size (particularly in silver) would be minted in significant quantities. For the Roman successors of the drachma, see

Roman provincial coins Roman provincial currency was coinage minted within the Roman Empire by local civic rather than imperial authorities. These coins were often continuations of the original currencies that existed prior to the arrival of the Romans. Because so many ...

Denominations of ancient Greek drachma

The weight of the silver drachma was approximately 4.3 grams or 0.15 ounces, although weights varied significantly from one city-state to another. It was divided into six obols of 0.72 grams, which were subdivided into four tetartemoria of 0.18 grams, one of the smallest coins ever struck, approximately 5–7 mm in diameter.

Historic currency divisions

:12 ''chalkoi'' = 1 ''

obolus The obol ( grc-gre, , ''obolos'', also ὀβελός (''obelós''), ὀβελλός (''obellós''), ὀδελός (''odelós''). "nail, metal spit"; la, obolus) was a form of ancient Greek currency and weight. Currency Obols were u ...

'' :6 ''oboloi'' = 1 ''drachma'' :70 ''drachmae'' = 1 '' mina'' (or ''mna''), later 100 ''drachmae'' = 1 ''mina'' :60 ''

minae The Ministry of Environment and Energy (MINAE, es, Ministerio de Ambiente y Energía) is a ministry or department of the government of Costa Rica. Agencies *SINAC National System of Conservation Areas (SINAC, es, Sistema Nacional de Áreas de Co ...

'' = 1 ''

Athenian Talent The Attic talent (a talent of the Attic standard), also known as the Athenian talent or Greek talent ( el, τάλαντον, ''talanton''), is an ancient unit of weight equal to about , as well as a unit of value equal to this amount of pure silver ...

'' (Athenian standard) Minae and talents were never actually minted: they represented weight measures used for commodities (e.g. grain) as well as metals like silver or gold. The

New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Christ ...

mentions both didrachma and, by implication, tetradrachma in context of the

Temple tax The Temple tax (lit. מחצית השקל the half shekel) was a tax paid by Israelites and Levites which went towards the upkeep of the Jewish Temple, as reported in the New Testament. Traditionally, Kohanim (Jewish priests) were exempt from the t ...

Luke's Gospel The Gospel of Luke), or simply Luke (which is also its most common form of abbreviation). tells of the origins, birth, ministry, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ. Together with the Acts of the Apostles, it makes up a two-vol ...

includes a

parable A parable is a succinct, didactic story, in prose or verse, that illustrates one or more instructive lessons or principles. It differs from a fable in that fables employ animals, plants, inanimate objects, or forces of nature as characters, w ...

told by Jesus of a woman with 10 drachmae, who lost one and searched her home until she found it.

Modern drachma

First modern drachma

The drachma was reintroduced in May 1832, shortly before the establishment of the

Kingdom of Greece The Kingdom of Greece ( grc, label=Greek, Βασίλειον τῆς Ἑλλάδος ) was established in 1832 and was the successor state to the First Hellenic Republic. It was internationally recognised by the Treaty of Constantinople, where ...

. It replaced the ''

phoenix Phoenix most often refers to: * Phoenix (mythology), a legendary bird from ancient Greek folklore * Phoenix, Arizona, a city in the United States Phoenix may also refer to: Mythology Greek mythological figures * Phoenix (son of Amyntor), a ...

'' at par. The drachma was subdivided into 100

lepta ''Lepta'' (russian: Лепта, en, Contribution) is the second full-length album by the Russian folk metal band Arkona. It was released on 30 December 2004 through Sound Age Production. Track listing # "Sotkany Veka" (Woven Ages) – 4:14 # ...

Coins

The first coinage consisted of copper denominations of 1λ, 2λ, 5λ and 10λ, silver denominations of ₯, ₯, ₯1 and ₯5 and a gold coin of ₯20. The drachma coin weighed 4.5 g and contained 90% silver, with the ₯20 coin containing 5.8 g of gold. In 1868, Greece joined the

Latin Monetary Union The Latin Monetary Union (LMU) was a 19th-century system that unified several European currencies into a single currency that could be used in all member states when most national currencies were still made out of gold and silver. It was establish ...

and the drachma became equal in weight and value to the

French franc The franc (, ; sign: F or Fr), also commonly distinguished as the (FF), was a currency of France. Between 1360 and 1641, it was the name of coins worth 1 livre tournois and it remained in common parlance as a term for this amount of money. It w ...

. The new coinage issued consisted of copper coins of 1λ, 2λ, 5λ and 10λ, with the 5λ and 10λ coins bearing the names ''obolos'' () and ''diobolon'' (), respectively; silver coins of 20λ and 50λ, ₯1, ₯2 and ₯5 and gold coins of ₯5, ₯10 and ₯20. (Very small numbers of ₯50 and ₯100 coins in gold were also issued.) In 1894,

cupro-nickel Cupronickel or copper-nickel (CuNi) is an alloy of copper that contains nickel and strengthening elements, such as iron and manganese. The copper content typically varies from 60 to 90 percent. (Monel is a nickel-copper alloy that contains a minimu ...

5λ, 10λ and 20λ coins were introduced. No 1λ or 2λ coin had been issued since the late 1870s. Silver coins of ₯1 and ₯2 were last issued in 1911, and no coins were issued between 1912 and 1922, during which time the

collapsed due to

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. Between 1926 and 1930, a new coinage was introduced for the new Hellenic Republic, consisting of cupro-nickel coins in denominations of 20λ, 50λ, ₯1, and ₯2; nickel coins of ₯5; and silver coins of ₯10 and ₯20. These were the last coins issued for the first modern drachma, none were issued for the second.

Notes

Notes were issued by the

National Bank of Greece The National Bank of Greece (NBG; el, Εθνική Τράπεζα της Ελλάδος) is a global banking and financial services company with its headquarters in Athens, Greece. 85% of the company's pretax preprovision profits are derived ...

from 1841 until 1928. The Bank of Greece issued notes from 1928 until 2001, when Greece joined the

Euro The euro ( symbol: €; code: EUR) is the official currency of 19 out of the member states of the European Union (EU). This group of states is known as the eurozone or, officially, the euro area, and includes about 340 million citizens . ...

. Early denominations ranged from ₯10 to ₯500. Smaller denominations (₯1, ₯2, ₯3 and ₯5) were issued from 1885, with the first ₯5 notes being made by cutting ₯10 notes in half. When Greece finally achieved its independence from the Ottoman Empire in 1828, the

was introduced as the monetary unit; its use was short-lived, however, and in 1832 the phoenix was replaced by the drachma, adorned with the image of

King Otto of Greece Otto (, ; 1 June 181526 July 1867) was a Bavarian prince who ruled as King of Greece from the establishment of the monarchy on 27 May 1832, under the Convention of London, until he was deposed on 23 October 1862. The second son of King Lud ...

, who reigned as modern Greece's first king from 1832 to 1862. The drachma was divided into 100 lepta. In 2002 the drachma ceased to be legal tender after the euro, the monetary unit of the European Union, became Greece's sole currency. From 1917 to 1920, the Greek government took control of issuing small change notes under Law 991/1917. During that time, the government issued denominations of 10 & 50 lepta, and ₯1, ₯2 & ₯5. The National Bank of Greece introduced ₯1,000 notes in 1901, and the Bank of Greece introduced ₯5,000 notes in 1928. The economic depression of the 1920s affected many nations around the globe, including Greece. In 1922, the Greek government issued a forced loan in order to finance their growing budget deficit. On 1 April 1922, the government decreed that half of all bank notes had to be surrendered and exchanged for 6.5% bonds. The notes were then cut in half, with the portion bearing the Greek crown standing in for the bonds while the other half was exchanged for a new issue of central bank notes at half the original value. The Greek government again issued notes between 1940 and 1944, in denominations ranging from 50 lepta to 20. Image of 5 Drachma note cut in half

During the

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ger ...

–

Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...

occupation of Greece from 1941 to 1944, catastrophic

hyperinflation In economics, hyperinflation is a very high and typically accelerating inflation. It quickly erodes the real value of the local currency, as the prices of all goods increase. This causes people to minimize their holdings in that currency as t ...

caused much higher denominations to be issued, culminating in ₯100,000,000,000 notes in 1944. The Italian occupation authorities in the Ionian Islands printed their own currency, the Ionian drachma.

Second modern drachma

On 11 November 1944, following the liberation of Greece from Nazi Germany, old drachma were exchanged for new ones at the rate of ₯50,000,000,000 to ₯1. Only paper money was issued for the second drachma. The government issued notes of ₯1, ₯5, ₯10 and ₯20, with the Bank of Greece issuing ₯50, ₯100, ₯500, ₯1,000, ₯5,000, and ₯10,000 notes. This drachma also suffered from high inflation. The government later issued ₯100, ₯500, and ₯1,000-drachma notes, and the Bank of Greece issued ₯20,000 and ₯50,000 notes.

Third modern drachma

On 9 April 1953, in an effort to halt inflation, Greece joined the

Bretton Woods system The Bretton Woods system of monetary management established the rules for commercial and financial relations among the United States, Canada, Western European countries, Australia, and Japan after the 1944 Bretton Woods Agreement. The Bretto ...

. On 1 May 1954, the drachma was revalued at a rate of ₯1,000 to ₯1, and small change notes were abolished for the last time. The third drachma assumed a fixed exchange rate of ₯30 per

dollar Dollar is the name of more than 20 currencies. They include the Australian dollar, Brunei dollar, Canadian dollar, Hong Kong dollar, Jamaican dollar, Liberian dollar, Namibian dollar, New Taiwan dollar, New Zealand dollar, Singapore dollar, U ...

until 20 October 1973: over the next 25 years, the official exchange rate gradually declined, reaching 400 drachmae per dollar. On 1 January 2002, the Greek drachma was officially replaced as the circulating currency by the

, and it has not been

legal tender Legal tender is a form of money that courts of law are required to recognize as satisfactory payment for any monetary debt. Each jurisdiction determines what is legal tender, but essentially it is anything which when offered ("tendered") in pa ...

since 1 March 2002.

Third modern drachma coins

The first issue of coins minted in 1954 consisted of holed aluminium 5-, 10- and 20-lepton pieces, with 50-lepton, ₯1, ₯2 and ₯5 pieces in cupro-nickel. ₯10 coins of a brighter alloy were issued in 1959 and a silver ₯20 piece was issued in 1960, replacing the corresponding banknotes. Coins in denominations from 50 lepta to ₯20 carried a portrait of King Paul (1947–1964). New coins were introduced in 1966, ranging from 50 lepta to ₯10, depicting

King Constantine II Constantine II ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Βʹ, ''Konstantínos II''; 2 June 1940) reigned as the last King of Greece, from 6 March 1964 until the abolition of the Greek monarchy on 1 June 1973. Constantine is the only son of King Paul an ...

(1964–1974). A silver ₯30 coin for the centennial of Greece's royal dynasty was minted in 1963. The following year a non-circulating coin of this value was produced to commemorate the royal wedding. The reverse of all coins was altered in 1971 to reflect the military junta which was in power from 1967 to 1974. This design included a soldier standing in front of the flames of the rising phoenix and the date of the coup d'état, April 21, 1967. A ₯20 coin in cupro-nickel with an image of

Europa Europa may refer to: Places * Europe * Europa (Roman province), a province within the Diocese of Thrace * Europa (Seville Metro), Seville, Spain; a station on the Seville Metro * Europa City, Paris, France; a planned development * Europa Cliff ...

on the obverse was issued in 1973. In late 1973, several new coin types were introduced: unholed aluminium (10λ and 20λ), nickel-brass (50 lepta, ₯1, and ₯2) and cupro-nickel (₯5, ₯10, and ₯20). These provisional coins carried the design of the phoenix rising from the flame on the obverse, and used the country's new designation as the "Hellenic Republic", replacing the coins also issued in 1973 as the Kingdom of Greece with King Constantine II's portrait. A new series of all 8 denominations was introduced in 1976 carrying images of early national heroes on the smaller values. Cupro-nickel ₯50 coins were introduced in 1980. In 1986, aluminium-bronze ₯50 coins were introduced, followed by copper ₯1 and ₯2 pieces in 1988 and aluminium-bronze coins of ₯20 and ₯100 in 1990. In 2000, a set of 6 themed ₯500 coins were issued to commemorate the 2004 Athens Olympic Games.

Coin A coin is a small, flat (usually depending on the country or value), round piece of metal or plastic used primarily as a medium of exchange or legal tender. They are standardized in weight, and produced in large quantities at a mint in order t ...

s in circulation at the time of the adoption of the euro were * 50λ (€0.0015) * ₯1 (€0.0029) * ₯2 (€0.0059) * ₯5 (€0.0147) * ₯10 (€0.0293) * ₯20 (€0.0587) * ₯50 (€0.147) * ₯100 (€0.293) * ₯500 (€1.47)

Gallery

File:Otto-dr.jpg, Gold ₯20 coin depicting king Othon I, 1833 File:Geo 20dr.jpg, Gold ₯20 coin depicting king Georgios I, 1876 George-50dr.jpg, Gold ₯50 coin depicting king Georgios I, 1876 File:5dracme1874front.jpg, ₯5 coin, 1876 File:1drachmi 1973.jpg, ₯1 coin during the 1973–1974 military controlled Republic, 1973 File:Konstantinos Kanaris 1 Drachma.png, ₯1 coin depicting

Konstantinos Kanaris Konstantinos Kanaris ( el, Κωνσταντίνος Κανάρης, ; c. 17901877), also anglicised as Constantine Kanaris or Canaris, was a Greek admiral, Prime Minister, and a hero of the Greek War of Independence.Woodhouse, p. 129. Bio ...

, 1976 File:1drachmaowlfr.jpg, ₯1 coin depicting the

Owl of Athena In Greek mythology, a little owl (''Athene noctua'') traditionally represents or accompanies Athena, the virgin goddess of wisdom, or Minerva, her syncretic incarnation in Roman mythology. Because of such association, the bird—often referred ...

File:2drachma1971fbl.jpg, ₯2 coin with a soldier standing in front of a Phoenix

Banknotes

The first issues of banknotes were in denominations of ₯10, ₯20 and ₯50, soon followed by ₯100, ₯500 and ₯1,000 by 1956. ₯5,000 notes were introduced in 1984, followed by ₯10,000 notes in 1995 and ₯200 notes in 1997.

Banknote A banknote—also called a bill (North American English), paper money, or simply a note—is a type of negotiable instrument, negotiable promissory note, made by a bank or other licensed authority, payable to the bearer on demand. Banknotes w ...

s in circulation at the time of the adoption of the euro were * ₯100 (€0.2935), depicting

and

Adamantios Korais Adamantios Korais or Koraïs ( el, Ἀδαμάντιος Κοραῆς ; la, Adamantius Coraes; french: Adamance Coray; 27 April 17486 April 1833) was a Greek scholar credited with laying the foundations of modern Greek literature and a majo ...

* ₯200 (€0.5869), depicting

Rigas Feraios Rigas Feraios ( el, Ρήγας Φεραίος , sometimes ''Rhegas Pheraeos''; rup, Riga Fereu) or Velestinlis (Βελεστινλής , also transliterated ''Velestinles''); 1757 – 24 June 1798), born as Antonios Rigas Velestinlis ( el ...

* ₯500 (€1.47), depicting

Ioannis Capodistrias Count Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias (10 or 11 February 1776 – 9 October 1831), sometimes anglicized as John Capodistrias ( el, Κόμης Ιωάννης Αντώνιος Καποδίστριας, Komis Ioannis Antonios Kapodistrias; russian: � ...

* ₯1,000 (€2.93), depicting

Apollo Apollo, grc, Ἀπόλλωνος, Apóllōnos, label=genitive , ; , grc-dor, Ἀπέλλων, Apéllōn, ; grc, Ἀπείλων, Apeílōn, label=Arcadocypriot Greek, ; grc-aeo, Ἄπλουν, Áploun, la, Apollō, la, Apollinis, label= ...

* ₯5,000 (€14.67), depicting

Theodoros Kolokotronis Theodoros Kolokotronis ( el, Θεόδωρος Κολοκοτρώνης; 3 April 1770 – 4 February 1843) was a Greek general and the pre-eminent leader of the Greek War of Independence (1821–1829) against the Ottoman Empire. Kolokotronis's g ...

* ₯10,000 (€29.35), depicting George Papanicolaou and

Asclepius Asclepius (; grc-gre, Ἀσκληπιός ''Asklēpiós'' ; la, Aesculapius) is a hero and god of medicine in ancient Religion in ancient Greece, Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology. He is the son of Apollo and Coronis (lover of ...

Gallery (banknotes)

File:NBG banknote-1912.jpg, ₯5 banknote, 1912 File:5.000.000_drachmas,_1944_(3543707844).jpg, ₯5,000,000 banknote during the Axis Occupation

period, 1944 File:20_drachmas,_1955_(3542899543).jpg, ₯20 banknote, 1955

Encoding

In Unicode, the currency symbol is . There is a special Attic numeral, , for the value of one drachma but it fails to render in most browsers.

Restoration

The Drachmi Greek Democratic Movement Five Stars, which was founded in 2013, aims to restore the Drachma as Greece's currency.

In culture

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label=Hebrew/Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and religious ...

instructs

Peter Peter may refer to: People * List of people named Peter, a list of people and fictional characters with the given name * Peter (given name) ** Saint Peter (died 60s), apostle of Jesus, leader of the early Christian Church * Peter (surname), a sur ...

to pay a didrachma

Jerusalem temple The Temple in Jerusalem, or alternatively the Holy Temple (; , ), refers to the two now-destroyed religious structures that served as the central places of worship for Israelites and Jews on the modern-day Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusa ...

tax in their own behalf, . * Drachma is the currency used in ''

Spy Fox in "Dry Cereal" ''Spy Fox in "Dry Cereal"'' is the first of three games in the Spy Fox series developed by Humongous Entertainment and marketed by Atari. The game was ported to the Wii in 2008, utilizing the Wii Remote for point-and-click controls, but it onl ...

'', set in the fictional Greek island of Acidophilus. * The golden drachma is the main unit of currency in Rick Riordan's ''

Percy Jackson & the Olympians ''Percy Jackson & the Olympians'' is a series of five fantasy novels written by American author Rick Riordan, and the first book series in the '' Camp Half-Blood Chronicles''. The novels are set in a world with the Greek gods in the 21st centu ...

'' fantasy adventure novel series, as well as its spinoff ''

The Heroes of Olympus ''The Heroes of Olympus'' is a pentalogy of fantasy-adventure novels written by American author Rick Riordan. The novels detail a conflict between Greek demigods, Roman demigods, and Gaia (Roman name Terra). In the fourth book of the series, t ...

'', the latter of which also features the Roman

denarius The denarius (, dēnāriī ) was the standard Roman silver coin from its introduction in the Second Punic War to the reign of Gordian III (AD 238–244), when it was gradually replaced by the antoninianus. It continued to be minted in very ...

. * The drachma is used in the video game ''

Assassin's Creed Origins ''Assassin's Creed Origins'' is a 2017 action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Montreal and published by Ubisoft. It is the tenth major installment in the ''Assassin's Creed'' series, following 2015's ''Assassin's Creed Syndicate''. ...

'', set in Ptolemaic Egypt, as the currency used by the player to purchase weapons, outfits and mounts. It is also used in the subsequent game ''

Assassin's Creed Odyssey ''Assassin's Creed Odyssey'' is a 2018 action role-playing video game developed by Ubisoft Quebec and published by Ubisoft. It is the eleventh major installment in the '' Assassin's Creed'' series and the successor to 2017's ''Assassin's Creed ...

'', set in

Ancient Greece Ancient Greece ( el, Ἑλλάς, Hellás) was a northeastern Mediterranean civilization, existing from the Greek Dark Ages of the 12th–9th centuries BC to the end of classical antiquity ( AD 600), that comprised a loose collection of cult ...

. *The drachma is also mentioned in William Shakespeare's

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

in Mark Antony's famous " Friends, Romans, Countrymen" speech. * Raincrow Studios' gam
Covens
uses Silver and Gold Drachs as the game's main form of currency.

Notes and references

;Notes ;References

External links

Overview of the modern Greek drachma from the BBC

{{DEFAULTSORT:Greek Drachma Coins of ancient Greece Currencies of Europe Currencies replaced by the euro Economic history of Greece Modern obsolete currencies Currencies of Greece Currency symbols