Æ21

Sardes — ancient capital of Lydia and later a key administrative node under both the Seleucids and Rome — retained the right to strike civic bronze well into the Severan period, when this piece was produced. The date range spans the reigns of Septimius Severus through Elagabalus, a stretch during which the city actively courted imperial favor, eventually securing the title of neokoros, or temple warden, granting it prestige over rival Lydian cities.

The multiple concordant references, with slight variant designations across the SNG Copenhagen and Munich corpora, suggest minor die differences within what was likely a single sustained issue.