This bronze was struck under the authority of the proconsul Rousônos during a rare moment of formally declared civic harmony between Smyrna and Ephesus — rival cities whose competition for honorific titles, temple rights, and Roman favor was relentless and occasionally vicious. The ΟΜΟΝΟΙΑ legend (Homonoia, or concord) on such issues was not a description of genuine goodwill but a diplomatic gesture, likely tied to specific negotiations or shared religious observances that required a public, durable expression of alliance.
Domitian's reign saw a notable increase in these inter-city concord issues across the conventus of Asia, possibly encouraged by Roman administrators anxious to suppress municipal friction.
This bronze was struck under the authority of the proconsul Rousônos during a rare moment of formally declared civic harmony between Smyrna and Ephesus — rival cities whose competition for honorific titles, temple rights, and Roman favor was relentless and occasionally vicious. The ΟΜΟΝΟΙΑ legend (Homonoia, or concord) on such issues was not a description of genuine goodwill but a diplomatic gesture, likely tied to specific negotiations or shared religious observances that required a public, durable expression of alliance.
Domitian's reign saw a notable increase in these inter-city concord issues across the conventus of Asia, possibly encouraged by Roman administrators anxious to suppress municipal friction.