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Æ32 - Marcus Aurelius L Β
| Issuer | Alexandria (Egypt) |
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| Year | 161-162 |
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| Diameter | 32 mm |
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| Obverse description | Laureate, cuirassed and paludamentum-draped bust of Marcus Aurelius facing left, seen from the rear, presented in the characteristic Alexandrian three-quarter back view. The emperor's effigy is rendered in the provincial style typical of the Alexandrian mint, with the laureate wreath clearly indicated atop the head. The encircling Greek legend names the emperor in the nominative. The flan is irregular and the surfaces show typical Alexandrian bronze patination. |
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| Reverse description | The river god Nilus reclines to the left, his mature bearded figure partially draped, holding a tall reed in his right hand and a cornucopia overflowing with produce in his left arm, symbolising the fertility brought by the annual Nile flood. A crocodile, the sacred animal of the Nile and emblematic of Egypt, is depicted below the reclining figure. The composition reflects the standard Alexandrian iconographic programme celebrating the abundance of the Nile. The field is plain, with the regnal date rendered in Greek numerals in the reverse legend. |
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| Additional information |
Alexandria's civic bronze coinage reset its regnal year numbering when Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus assumed joint rule in 161 AD — the first time Rome had ever recognized two co-equal emperors simultaneously. This piece dates to Year 2 of that unusual dyarchy, struck while the Parthian War was already brewing in the east, a campaign that would eventually bring the Antonine Plague back to Roman Egypt along the returning legionary supply lines.