Follis "Heraclius and Constantine" - Sasanian Occupation of Syria

Between 613 and 628, Sasanian forces under Shahrbaraz occupied Syria, Egypt, and much of Anatolia in the most devastating Persian advance into Roman territory since the Achaemenid period. The Byzantine administrative and monetary apparatus in these regions effectively collapsed. Local mints either shut down or, in some documented cases, continued striking Byzantine-type bronze under Sasanian tolerance — producing pieces whose attribution remains genuinely contested among specialists.

This follis falls into that uncertain zone: struck to Byzantine fabric, carrying Byzantine imagery, yet issued under Persian occupation. Whether it represents Byzantine continuity, Sasanian acquiescence, or opportunistic local production is a question the coin itself cannot answer.