Æ30 - Elagabalus ΑΦΡΟΔΕΙϹΙΕΩΝ

Aphrodisias owed its civic identity so thoroughly to its patron goddess that the city resisted name changes long after other Carian communities had accepted Roman rebranding. That stubbornness paid off — it remained one of the few cities in Asia Minor permitted to maintain a functioning sanctuary with active cult status well into the Christian imperial period. Elagabalus, whose own religious program centered on a Syrian solar deity, showed unusual tolerance toward established local cults, which may partly explain why civic bronze production at Aphrodisias continued without interruption through his turbulent four-year reign.