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Æ23 - Marcus Aurelius ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ
| Issuer | Nicaea (Bithynia and Pontus) |
|---|---|
| Year | 161-180 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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| Reverse description | Dionysus seated to left, his head turned to the right, holding a long thyrsus in his hand; to the right, a Satyr advances to the right with head turned back to the left, raising one arm and holding a pedum (shepherd's crook). The composition reflects the Dionysiac thiasos iconography common in Bithynian provincial coinage. The ethnic legend ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ appears in the field, identifying the issuing city of Nicaea. The scene is rendered in the typical flat, provincial engraving style of the period. |
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| Reverse lettering | ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ (Translation: of the Nicaeans) |
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| Additional information |
Nicaea was among the most politically assertive cities in Bithynia, locked in a long-running rivalry with Nicomedia over which held the title of regional metropolis — a dispute that Roman emperors deliberately left unresolved to keep both cities competing for imperial favor. Bronze civic issues struck under Marcus Aurelius reflect that competition directly; municipal mints produced these coins partly as assertions of civic status, not merely for exchange. The reference to ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ on the civic coinage was itself a claim of identity and precedence.