Æ36 - Antoninus Pius ΠΟΠΛΙΟϹ ϹΤΡΑΤΗ ΑΝΕΘΗΚΕΝ ΜΗΤΡΟΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ

The dedication legend ΠΟΠΛΙΟϹ ϹΤΡΑΤΗ ΑΝΕΘΗΚΕΝ identifies the magistrate responsible for this issue — a local official named Poplios Strate, whose name reflects the deep Romanization of Ionian civic elites by the mid-second century. Metropolis was a minor city in the Cayster valley, perpetually overshadowed by Ephesus, and these civic bronzes were essentially tools of local prestige as much as currency. The magistrate's name on the coin was the point.

Antoninus Pius actively encouraged provincial coinage across the Greek East, and his reign saw a marked increase in civic bronze production throughout Ionia.