Æ20 - Valerian and Gallienus ΕΦΕϹΙΩΝ Γ ΝΕΟΚΟΡΩΝ

Ephesus held the title of neokoros — temple warden — multiple times over, and the Γ (gamma) designation marks this as a third-time grant, a distinction the city pursued aggressively through political lobbying in Rome. The joint reign of Valerian and Gallienus, father and son ruling simultaneously as co-emperors from 253, gave provincial mints an unusual administrative reason to name both emperors on a single issue. Valerian's capture by the Sasanian king Shapur I at the Battle of Edessa in 260 effectively ended joint issues from the eastern provincials.