Main mints: Kos, Kalymnos; islands of Rhodos, Rhodes, Kamisos, Ialysos, Lindos.

The most important of the islands of Caria, and after Alexanders conquest the most important place in Caria, was Rhodes, on the island of Rhodos. The city was founded as a joint federal capital by the three cities there, namely Ialysos, Kamisos and Lindos, just before 400 BC. Rhodes grew to become a great maritime power, and was able to resist the siege of Demetrius the Besieger; not, of course, city-taker. Their maritime law became the basis for much of the sea-law of the modern world, being preserved through Roman and Byzantine codes.

The coinage of Rhodes used as the city-badge a rose, which was a punning type on the city-name. Those of the other cities of the island, previous to 408 BC, have a badge of the particular city.

Kos issued coinage with a crab as the main type. The derivation of this badge probably has something to do with the legend of the battle of the gods with the giants: one of them, Polybotes, was crushed by Poseidon under a piece of Kos, torn off and hurled at him.