Æ35 - Septimius Severus ΕΠΙ ϹΤΡ Κ ΡΟΥΦΙ, ϹΜΥΡΝΑΙΩΝ

Smyrna was among the most politically aggressive cities in the province of Asia when it came to courting imperial favor, and its civic coinage under Septimius Severus reflects that ambition. The magistrate named in the legend — the strategos Rufus — held a position that carried real administrative weight, and his name on the die was a public declaration of local authority operating under Roman sanction. Smyrna had been rivalring Ephesus and Pergamon for the title of "first city of Asia" for generations, and large prestige bronzes like this one were partly civic propaganda in that ongoing competition.