Æ Tessera

Tesserae of this type from Ephesus functioned primarily as tokens — admission to public baths, distributions of grain or oil during civic benefactions, or entry to theatrical events — rather than as currency in any strict sense. The city's civic administration issued them in enormous variety, which is why the same basic type turns up across three major reference collections with slightly differing attributions. Pinning down a precise civic magistrate or issuing occasion is rarely possible, and scholars have largely stopped trying.