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| Issuer | City of Magnesia ad Sipylum (Conventus of Smyrna) |
|---|---|
| Year | 198-217 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Obverse description | Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Emperor Caracalla facing right, depicted from the rear in the characteristic heroic three-quarter back view typical of Eastern provincial coinage. The imperial effigy displays a laurel wreath, military cuirass with visible pteruges, and a paludamentum fastened at the right shoulder. The portrait is rendered in high relief with characteristic bold provincial die-cutting style. The surrounding Greek legend runs clockwise along the rim within a dotted border. |
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| Obverse lettering | ΑΥΤ Κ Μ ΑΥΡ Ϲ ΑΝΤΩΝΕΙΝΟϹ (Translation: Emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Severus Antoninus) |
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| Additional information |
Magnesia ad Sipylum, tucked beneath Mount Sipylus in Lydia, held a peculiar civic pride rooted in mythological geography — ancient sources placed Niobe's weeping rock formation on those slopes. Under Caracalla, provincial bronze issues like this one were coordinated through the conventus at Smyrna, where the strategos named in the obverse legend, M. Aurelius Gaios, held administrative responsibility for the issue. The magistrate's name preserved in the legend is effectively the only surviving record of his tenure.