AR22 - Valerian and Gallienus L Ε

The joint reign coinage of Valerian and Gallienus from Alexandria represents one of the last phases of the Egyptian billon tetradrachm before the metal content collapsed almost entirely. By the mid-250s, the alloy had already degraded substantially from earlier imperial issues, and within a generation the coins would be little more than bronze washed with a trace of silver. The Alexandrian mint operated under tight Roman oversight but maintained its own regnal year dating system — L Ε marking year five of the joint reign.

Valerian was captured by the Sasanian king Shapur I at the Battle of Edessa in 260, just two years after this piece was struck.