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Æ Nummus - Leo I Constantinople
| Issuer | Eastern Roman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 457-474 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Diameter | 11.6 mm |
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| Obverse description | Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Emperor Leo I facing right, rendered in the late Roman imperial style typical of fifth-century Eastern coinage. The portrait, though heavily worn, retains the characteristic elongated facial features of Leonine numismatic portraiture. A partial Latin legend surrounds the effigy, reading D N L-EO, an abbreviated form of Dominus Noster Leo. The flan is irregular and the strike somewhat flat, consistent with the small AE nummus denomination of this period. |
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| Obverse lettering | D N L-EO |
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| Additional information |
Leo I came to power in 457 as the first Eastern emperor crowned by the Patriarch of Constantinople rather than by a military commander — a deliberate shift in legitimating authority that would shape Byzantine succession for centuries. These small nummi represent the lowest denomination in active circulation during his reign, a period when the Eastern court was simultaneously managing the catastrophic fallout of the 468 Vandal campaign, in which a joint Eastern and Western fleet was destroyed off Cape Bon at enormous financial cost to the imperial treasury.