Æ24 - Marcus Aurelius ΑΜΑϹΤΡΙΑΝΩΝ

Amastris, a coastal city on the Pontic shore founded by the niece of Darius III, retained strong civic pride under Roman provincial administration — local bronze coinage was one of the few outlets through which a city could assert its identity, and Amastrian issues of this period are notably consistent in their civic ethnic legend. Marcus Aurelius' co-reign with Lucius Verus from 161 complicates attribution of undated provincial bronzes; without an imperial title specifying the co-emperorship, issues from the first years of his reign are assigned by obverse type alone.