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Æ29 - Valerian and Gallienus ϹΜΥΡΝΑΙΩΝ Γ ΝΕΩΚΟΡΩΝ ΕΠ Ϲ ΦΙΛΗΤΟΥ ΙΠΠΙ/ΚΟΥ
| Issuer | Smyrna (Conventus of Smyrna) |
|---|---|
| Year | 253-268 |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | The eponymous city goddess and Amazonian foundress Smyrna stands facing left in the field, attired in military dress with a chlamys draped over her left arm. She holds a patera in her right hand and a double axe (labrys) together with a pelta (crescent-shaped Amazon shield) in her left hand. A ship's prow appears at her feet, alluding to Smyrna's maritime prominence. The surrounding legend, divided across the field, records the city's triple neocorate status and the name of the presiding strategos of equestrian rank, Philetos. The composition is enclosed within a dotted border. |
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Smyrna held the title of neokoros — official guardian of an imperial cult temple — three times over, a distinction advertised aggressively on civic coinage during the joint reign of Valerian and Gallienus. The magistrate named in this inscription, Philetos, held a hippikos rank, denoting equestrian status within the provincial administrative hierarchy. Smyrna competed fiercely with Ephesus and Pergamon for such honorifics, and the triple neokorate designation was a hard-won prize tied directly to demonstrations of loyalty during the political instability of the 250s.