Æ36 - Marcus Aurelius Α ΝΕΙΚ ΡΩΜΑΙΩΝ? (on shield) ΘΕΑ ΝΕΙΚΗ ΕΦΕϹΙΩΝ

Ephesus secured the title neokoros — warden of the imperial cult — multiple times, and the civic pride attached to that status drove a competitive tradition of large-denomination bronze issues celebrating Roman victory gods alongside local cult figures. This piece falls within the early years of Marcus Aurelius's sole reign, before Lucius Verus was dispatched east for the Parthian War in 162, a conflict whose eventual Roman success would be commemorated heavily in Ephesian civic coinage. The pairing of Roman and Ephesian Nike figures on a single issue reflects that inter-cult diplomacy cities conducted with Rome through bronze, not gold.