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Æ35 - Severus Alexander ΖΕΥϹ ΟΛΥΜΠΙΟϹ ΕΦΕϹΙΩΝ
| Issuer | Ephesus (Conventus of Ephesus) |
|---|---|
| Year | 222-235 |
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| Composition | Bronze |
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|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | Zeus Olympios enthroned to the left, depicted in a majestic seated pose upon an ornate throne, holding in his extended right hand a small cult statue of Artemis Ephesia — the multi-breasted goddess closely associated with the city — and grasping a long sceptre in his left hand. The composition emphasises the interplay between the supreme Olympian deity and the principal goddess of Ephesus, underscoring the city's religious prestige. The reverse legend arcs around the design field in Greek script, identifying the type as pertaining to the Ephesian community. |
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Ephesus held the prestigious title of "first and greatest metropolis of Asia," a designation fiercely contested with Smyrna and Pergamon throughout the second and third centuries. The city's right to host the imperial cult and its control over the sanctuary of Artemis gave it enormous leverage in petitioning Rome for honorific privileges — coins like this one, invoking Zeus Olympios as a civic deity, were part of that ongoing campaign of self-promotion directed at the imperial court.
Severus Alexander's reign saw a notable proliferation of large civic bronzes across the Asian conventus, partly because his mother Julia Mamaea cultivated strong relationships with eastern Greek cities.