Æ33 - Elagabalus ΚΥΖΙΚΗΝΩΝ ΝΕΩΚΟΡ

Cyzicus held the rare distinction of being a thrice-crowned neokoros city — an honor granted by Rome for maintaining imperial cult temples — and coins of this type explicitly advertise that status, almost certainly minted during a period of active competition among Asian cities for such prestige titles. Elagabalus, whose short reign saw extraordinary concessions to provincial elites in exchange for loyalty, was a particularly useful emperor to flatter.

The city's mint was among the most active in the Mysian conventus, with a long tradition of large bronze production stretching back well before Roman administration.