Æ28 - Vespasian ΕΠΙ Μ ΜΑΙΚΙΟΥ ΡΟΥΦΟΥ ΑΝΘΥΠΑΤΟΥ

Maicius Rufus served as proconsul of Bithynia-Pontus under Vespasian, and his name appearing on the coin's legend reflects the provincial practice of honoring the sitting governor — a form of administrative self-promotion that Rome tolerated as long as the emperor's authority remained visually dominant. The Koinon, the league of cities that collectively issued these provincial bronzes, used such issues partly to maintain local civic identity within a province that had been bequeathed to Rome by its last king, Nicomedes IV, in 74 BC.