Æ17 - Augustus ϹΕΒΑϹΤΟϹ

Cyzicus, a prosperous city on the Propontis coast, maintained strong ties to Roman power throughout the late Republic and was rewarded accordingly under the new Augustan order. The city had previously lost its autonomy in 74 BC after killing Roman citizens, only to have it restored by Caesar — a political debt that colored its enthusiastic embrace of imperial cult coinage. Provincial bronzes of this type circulated alongside the Roman monetary system without being part of it, filling a local transactional need the imperial mint had no interest in serving.