difficulty it is not hard to find an escape: 224 grs. of electrum = 168 grs. of gold; that is exactly 1⅓ gold shekels (129 ÷ 3 = 43 × 4 = 172). The division into thirds and sixths is of course a well-known feature in the coinage of the Asiatic coast-towns. Thus there would be no practical difficulty in the ordinary monetary transactions, for three Phoenician drachms of electrum (= 168 grs.) would = 1 gold shekel; and 4 gold Thirds (_Tritae_), or 8 gold Sixths (_Hectae_), would equal one electrum stater of 224-220 grs. If on the other hand silver held a lower value in relation to gold on the coasts of the Aegean, and the electrum employed in that quarter was alloyed to a greater extent with silver, two disturbing elements are introduced. The probabilities are in favour of silver being cheaper in Cilicia and the contiguous region, and most certainly at Cyzicus the electrum was half silver, whilst the Phocaic electrum had a bad name in antiquity, since according to Hesychius Phocaic gold was synonymous with bad gold. Is it then possible that 220 grains of electrum were equivalent to 130 grs. of pure gold? This gives about 60 per cent. of gold. If gold was to silver as 13·3:1, the gold unit of 130 grs. is equal to 8 silver pieces of 220 grs. (130 × 13·3 = 1765 ÷ 8 = 220·6). In our present state of knowledge it is impossible to decide in favour of either view, but it is at least evident that some such relation and adjustment must have existed between the three metals. In fact the problem which the Lydians tried to solve was not merely that of _Bimetallism_, but of _Trimetallism_. [Illustration: FIG. 28. Lydian electrum coin.]