Catalog
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| Issuer | Amastris (Bithynia and Pontus) |
|---|---|
| Year | 193-211 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Technique | Hammered |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | An eagle stands facing on a globe, its head turned to the left, holding a wreath in its beak — a type emblematic of imperial apotheosis and divine favor widely employed on provincial coinage of the Severan era. The wings are spread or partially folded, and the bird is rendered in a bold, stylized manner typical of Pontic civic issues. The ethnic legend ΑΜΑϹΤΡΙΑΝΩΝ is disposed around the reverse field, identifying the issuing city of Amastris. |
| Reverse script | Greek |
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| Additional information |
Amastris was a prosperous Black Sea port whose civic coinage under Septimius Severus reflects the city's continued autonomy in managing local bronze issues during a reign otherwise consumed by civil war — Severus fought and defeated three rival claimants between 193 and 197 before consolidating power. Provincial mints across Bithynia and Pontus continued striking through this instability largely without interruption, their output governed by local magistrates whose names occasionally appear on the dies.
The city itself was founded by a niece of Darius III, a detail the Amastrianoi invoked periodically in their civic identity across centuries of coinage.