Catalog
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| Issuer | Ephesus Mint (Roman Provincial) |
|---|---|
| Year | 253-260 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Obverse description | Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Emperor Valerian facing right, depicted from behind, with paludamentum visible over the cuirass. The imperial effigy is rendered in the typical provincial style of the Ephesian mint. The peripheral legend in Greek characters encircles the bust, naming the emperor with his full titulature. The coin displays a green-brown patina consistent with provincial bronze issues of the mid-third century AD. |
|---|---|
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| Mintage | ND (253-260) |
| Additional information |
Ephesus held the title of neokoros — temple warden — multiple times over, and the Γ (gamma) in this legend marks the city's third such honor, a distinction aggressively pursued through civic embassy to Rome. Under Valerian and Gallienus, co-emperors from 253, Ephesus was one of the most prolific provincial minting cities in Asia Minor, flooding the region with bronze as the central Roman coinage system buckled under military pressure on multiple frontiers simultaneously.
Valerian was captured by Shapur I of Persia in 260 — the only reigning Roman emperor ever taken prisoner — which hard-dates the end of this joint-reign issue.