Æ17 - Septimius Severus ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ

Nicaea's civic bronze coinage under Septimius Severus belongs to a period when the city was quietly consolidating its position against its perpetual rival Nicomedia — a competition for provincial prestige that played out partly through the volume and quality of locally issued coin. The ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ ethnic on these pieces is the city's claim staked in bronze.