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Nummus in the name of Leo I Carthage mint
| Issuer | Vandal Kingdom |
|---|---|
| Year | 457-490 |
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| Reference(s) | BMC Vandal#118 |
| Obverse description | Pearl-diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust of Emperor Leo I facing right, rendered in a somewhat crude provincial style characteristic of Vandal-era coinage. The effigy occupies the central field of the flan, with traces of a surrounding legend that remains largely illegible due to the irregular striking and worn condition of the die. The portrait retains visible facial features including a prominent nose and stylized drapery at the shoulder. |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Additional information |
The Vandal kingdom's decision to strike bronze nummi bearing the name of the reigning Eastern emperor — in this case Leo I — was a calculated political gesture, not a concession. Gaiseric, who controlled Carthage from 439, maintained the fiction of imperial legitimacy on coinage while conducting an entirely independent foreign policy, including the sack of Rome in 455. The practice kept trade frictions low with Constantinople without surrendering an ounce of actual authority.
Carthage had been one of the Roman world's most productive mints before the Vandal conquest. Its output under Vandal administration was a fraction of that, and the surviving nummi from this period are frequently poorly struck on irregular flans.