From Electrum to Digital: A STEAM Journey From Lydian Coins (SOI-TR-613)
Author: Özlem Kaya
School/organisation: Alaşehir Bilim Ve Sanat Merkezi
Below is a summary of the activities, but you can download the full Story of Reuse and its annexes here in Word and PDF.
“From Electrum to Digital” is an interdisciplinary STEAM journey that bridges ancient numismatic heritage with 21st-century technology. This implementation was inspired by the Europeana Learning Scenario “Coins that Tell Stories” by Eros Grossi.
Our school is located where the Lydian Kingdom was founded. Lydians minted the first coin named “Electrum” in BC 600, so this activity was significantly important for my students. Inspired by the resource found, I developed a new Learning Scenario in collaboration with an art teacher, a history teacher and an ICT teacher, named “From Electrum to Digital” and implemented it with 20 students aged 13-15.
Lesson 1: Digital Engagement and Creative Inquiry (60′)
The session opened with an introductory phase. Students completed a quiz to check their knowledge (Annex 1). Then, I asked these questions to students to grab their attention and spark their curiosity:
- How did using money change the world?
- How can we use modern technology to preserve our heritage?
- Which symbols were on the first coins?
They shared their thoughts and I showed them the Roman and Lydian coins from Europeana on a smart board, while explaining the importance of these two civilizations in history.
The discussion on the physical challenges of ancient minting (smelting metals, physical strength and coordination, choosing the right “flan” etc.) served as a vital “bridge” in my lesson. It shifted students’ perspective from seeing a coin as a simple object to seeing it as a product of human engineering and labour.
Following the discussion, we transitioned to a 30′ Tinkercad (https://www.tinkercad.com/) design session. Students designed their own unique coins. I asked students:
- If you were a Lydian King, how would you design your kingdom coins?
This stage was critical for students to grasp the geometric constraints of 3D objects and the artistic challenge of fitting a “Legend” (lettering) onto a circular/rectangle surface.
Lesson 2: AI-Powered Engineering and Physical Production (60′)
Students searched for Lydian coins on the Europeana platform: https://www.europeana.eu/it/search?page=1&view=grid&query=sardis%20coin.
They learned to check the license of each item and if they were allowed to download the items they chose. After selecting their favourite coins, they downloaded them as image files. I explained Creative Common licenses and warned students to download the images that have the licence, CC BY-NC-SA that gives permission to download, to remix or change the image as non-commercial with the same licence.
In this stage, students used Europeana to identify Lydian and Roman coins. They understood the difference between the Roman “Denarius” and the Lydian “Electrum” after I mentioned that the Electrum is the oldest minted coin in history. Since many archival photos were low resolution, students used Gemini AI to enhance the clarity of the symbols. Students moved from being passive users to active prompt engineers.
This adaptation added a sophisticated engineering layer to the history lesson, bringing AI into cultural heritage preservation. The restored high-contrast images were then successfully imported into Bambulab MakerLab and converted into STL formats for 3D printing (the STL files are available with the rest of project materials in Annex 4).
Lesson 3: Collaborative Decoding and Content Creation (60′)
Students worked in teams while the 3D printers were in action. They created QR codes for the coins using online tools (e.g., QR generator: https://www.qr-generator.ai). The generated QR codes redirected to the information of each coin from the Europeana platform. Students printed and tested the QR codes to make sure they worked correctly.
After learning the meanings of antique coins on the worksheet, and analysing them on Europeana, the teams used Canva (https://www.canva.com/) to create their own coin boards or postcards as a creative reflection activity. While creating their postcards, students successfully embedded the QR codes on the postcards, too.
They shared their learnings and feedback on the layout created on Canva (see Annex 4). Finally, I asked them to write one word to summarize their learnings in a word cloud (you can use an online tool, e.g. Mentimeter, https://www.mentimeter.com/).
Lesson 4: Printing Coin Boards/Postcards & The Sealing Ceremony (60′)
The implementation concluded with a wonderful session: the sealing ceremony. I printed the postcards and coin boards beforehand and prepared the handmade seal using a cork and the metal coin replica gifted by our municipality, where the Lydian capital is Sardis (in Salihli). Students performed a sealing ceremony, applying hot sealing wax in different colours to their postcards and coin boards and stamping them with the handmade seal.
Lesson 5: Assessment and Exhibition (60′)
After the sealing ceremony, the learning journey was evaluated using a 5-point analytical rubric (Annex 5).
The students then held an exhibition to display their coins and postcards. During the event, other students were invited to participate in the sealing process.
Outcomes for students
The primary outcome for the students was the development of historical knowledge through a hands-on approach. According to 5-Point Analytical Rubric, 90% of students achieved the “Exemplary” level in Numismatic Comprehension. Through the use of the specialized worksheet and the QR code creation linked to Europeana, students successfully decoded complex symbols and linked them to historical values.
Outcomes for the educator
Implementing this scenario provided me with several professional insights:
Using the Europeana “Coins that tell stories” Learning Scenario as a foundation, I realized how a high-quality educational resource can be infinitely expanded. Adapting a digital resource into a 3D-printing workshop has inspired me to apply this “Digital-to-Physical” bridge to other units in my curriculum.
I observed that students’ engagement levels spiked the moment we moved from screens to physical artifacts. Integrating the gifted replica coin of Salihli Municipality showed me the immense value of community partnerships in making STEM education feel connected to real life applications and grounded in communities.
By streamlining the schedule, I learned how to manage complex interdisciplinary tasks within a limited timeframe. The implemented scenario proved that the 5E STEM model is the most effective framework for guiding gifted students through a “Historical Craft” experience.
CC BY-NC-SA: the featured image used to illustrate this article has been found on Europeana and has been provided by the Fine Arts Museum Vienna