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Æ19 - Gordian III ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ
| Issuer | Nicaea (Bithynia and Pontus) |
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| Year | 238-244 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Emperor Gordian III facing right, depicted from the rear in three-quarter view, with the radiate crown clearly rendered. The imperial titulature legend runs around the periphery of the flan in Greek characters. The portrait exhibits the compact, youthful style characteristic of Gordian III's provincial coinage from Bithynian mints. |
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| Reverse script | Greek |
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Nicaea's bronze output under Gordian III was prolific — the city was one of the most active provincial mints in Bithynia during the mid-third century, competing with Nicomedia for civic prestige expressed partly through coinage volume. The ethnic legend ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ proudly asserts civic identity at a moment when Greek cities of the region were navigating the increasingly centralized demands of Rome while still maintaining the apparatus of local bronze production.
By Gordian's death in 244, likely at the hands of his own troops near Zaitha on the Persian campaign, provincial civic coinage of this type was already in terminal decline across the empire.