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2 Denarii - Sauromates II
| Issuer | Bosporan Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 182-192 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | Log in to see details |
| Currency | Bosporan Units |
| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | Log in to see details |
| Diameter | Log in to see details |
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| Engraver(s) | Log in to see details |
| In circulation to | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Nude Hercules (Heracles) striding to the right, with a lion skin draped over his shoulders. In his raised right hand he swings a club, while his left hand grasps the Ceryneian hind by its antlers. The marks of value, consisting of an asterisk and the letter B (denoting 2 Denarii), are placed across the open field. The composition reflects the enduring use of Heraclean imagery on Bosporan royal coinage as a symbol of dynastic strength and divine patronage. |
| Reverse script | Log in to see details |
| Reverse lettering | Log in to see details |
| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Sauromates II ruled the Bosporan Kingdom as a client king under Roman suzerainty, and his coinage reflects that dependency directly — the denomination itself, expressed in Roman denarii equivalents, was a deliberate alignment with the imperial monetary system rather than any native Bosporan tradition. The kingdom's copper issues of this period were effectively fiduciary tokens whose acceptance depended on Roman-backed political authority rather than intrinsic metal value.
The reign dates overlap precisely with that of Commodus in Rome, whose erratic fiscal policies created ripple effects even in peripheral client states.