Æ32 - Severus Alexander L Ι

Alexandria's civic bronze coinage under Severus Alexander operated on the Egyptian regnal year system, and year LΙ — his tenth — falls in 230–231 AD, a period when the emperor was increasingly preoccupied with the mounting Sasanian threat on Rome's eastern frontier. Ardashir I had launched his first major offensive into Roman Mesopotamia around 230, and the pressure would eventually force Severus Alexander to lead a campaign east in 231–232. Alexandrian bronzes of this phase circulated in a province still economically vital to Rome's grain supply, making their continued production a logistical as much as a political act.