Æ24 - Elagabalus ΙΕΡΑΠΟΛΕΙΤΩΝ ΝΕΩΚΟΡΩΝ, ΑΚΤΙΑ

Hierapolis in Syria had long cultivated imperial favor through its famous temple of Atargatis, and under Elagabalus — himself a Syrian priest-king from nearby Emesa — that relationship carried unusual weight. The ΝΕΩΚΟΡΩΝ title on this issue signals the city's formal status as a temple warden of the imperial cult, a designation cities competed for aggressively and spent heavily to advertise on local bronze.

The ΑΚΤΙΑ reference is to the Actia games, a festival revived by Augustus after Actium and subsequently franchised to favored provincial cities. Hierapolis holding the right to celebrate Actian games placed it in select company.