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Cistophorus - Claudius ROM ET AVG COM ASI, Roma
| Issuer | Roman Imperial Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 41-54 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
| Weight | 10.8 g |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Claudius stands facing, slightly turned to the left, within a distyle temple rendered in perspective, its columns and entablature framing the scene. A female figure, identified as the personification of the province of Asia or Roma, stands to the right and crowns the emperor with a wreath while holding a cornucopia in her left arm, symbolising the prosperity and loyalty of the Asian province. The legend ROM ET AVG COM ASI is distributed around the temple structure, proclaiming the dedication of the Commune Asiae to Rome and to the Augustus. The composition reflects the established iconographic tradition of the provincial cistophoric coinage, emphasising the bond between the imperial centre and the eastern provinces. The reverse design is enclosed within an irregularly shaped flan typical of cistophori struck under Claudius. |
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| Reverse lettering | ROM ET AVG COM ASI (Translation: The community of Asia to Rome and the emperor (Augustus).) |
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| Additional information |
The cistophorus was not a Roman invention — it was the standard silver coinage of the Attalid kingdom of Pergamon, adopted wholesale by Rome when it inherited the region in 133 BC. Claudius's decision to strike in this format was deliberate: the coin's deep familiarity across Asia Minor made it politically and commercially effective in ways that denarii were not. His cistophoric issues are among the earliest imperial coins to engage directly with the provincial monetary tradition rather than simply imposing Roman types onto it.
The COM ASI reverse type references the koinon, the league of Asian cities centered on the imperial cult — a formal acknowledgment of the administrative structure Rome depended on to govern the province.