I am mostly interested in the Mycenaean civilization and Minoan. If coins didn't exist, then what was the trade currency used?
Thank you!
No, coinage did not exist in the Bronze Age. It dates to the 7th century BCE, originating in Asia Minor. Coinage represents smaller transactions than were typically the case in the Bronze Age. For instance, the Mycenaean palace hubs controlled trade and generally seemed to have traded in bulk, or to have engaged in reciprocal or unequal gift exchange. When they did trade (and they did, a lot), the traded in barter via commodities. Some common Mycenaean commodities coming and going were: wine, olive oil, grains, ivory, gold, silver, electrum, copper, tin, and slaves. In BA shipwrecks like the Ulu Burun, metal ingots intended for transport and barter are a common find. Similarly, in early Iron Age Greece, lengths of bronze or iron ("spits") were traded as a sort of proto- coinage.