Æ22 - Septimius Severus L Θ

Alexandria's civic bronze coinage under Septimius Severus was tied to the Egyptian regnal year system, with LΘ denoting Year 9 of his reign — a dating convention unique to the Alexandrian mint that allows unusually precise attribution within a reign otherwise plagued by undated provincial issues. Egypt was administered as the emperor's personal property, not a senatorial province, which gave the Alexandrian prefect considerable autonomy in selecting reverse types. The mint was prolific, yet survival rates for smaller Æ denominations are poor; the alluvial conditions of the Nile Delta are unforgiving to base metal.