Æ42 - Commodus ϹΤΡΑ ΑΥΡ ΜΕΙΔΙΟΥ ΑϹΙΑΡΧΟΥ? ΚΥΖΙΚΗΝΩΝ ΝΕΟΚΟΡΩΝ

Cyzicus held the title of neokoros — guardian of an imperial cult temple — and competed fiercely with rival cities across the province of Asia for additional grants of the honor. The magistrate named in this issue, Aurelius Meidios, held the office of Asiarch, a prestigious regional priesthood tied to the imperial cult festivals that were themselves the political machinery behind exactly these coin-striking privileges. The question mark in the attribution reflects a reading problem in the die, not uncertainty about the office itself.