Æ27 - Valerian and Gallienus ΕФΕϹΙΩΝ Δ ΝΕΩΚΟΡΩΝ

Ephesus held the title of neokoros — temple warden — four times by the mid-third century, each grant awarded by Rome as a political privilege tied to the imperial cult. The Δ ΝΕΩΚΟΡΩΝ legend on this issue advertises that fourth grant explicitly, a piece of civic boasting that served the city's ongoing competition with Smyrna and Pergamon for provincial prestige. Such titles required periodic reconfirmation from the emperor, making coins bearing them a direct byproduct of diplomatic negotiation between Ephesus and the imperial court.

The joint reign of Valerian and Gallienus, 253–260, ended abruptly when Valerian was captured by Shapur I at Edessa — the only Roman emperor taken prisoner by a foreign enemy.