1 Solidus In the name of Justin I

Struck by Germanic authorities — most likely Frankish or Visigothic — who lacked both the political standing and the economic infrastructure to issue coinage under their own names, these pseudo-imperial solidi parasitized Byzantine imperial types as a guarantee of acceptability in trade. The Eastern Empire actively objected to the practice; Justinian I reportedly complained through diplomatic channels that barbarian imitations were undermining Byzantine monetary credibility across Mediterranean markets.

Justin I died in 527. That his name continued appearing on Germanic gold nearly a century later tells you everything about how slowly monetary trust moves.