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| Issuer | Roman Imperial Mint, Nicomedia |
|---|---|
| Year | 317-320 |
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| Currency | Argenteus, Reform of Diocletian (AD 293/301 – 310/324) |
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| Obverse description | Radiate bust of Licinius I facing left, laureate and draped, depicted in a three-quarter view. The emperor holds a sceptre in his right hand and a mappa in his left, attributes indicative of imperial authority and ceremonial office. The portrait follows the late Tetrarchic style, with a blocky, schematised rendering characteristic of the period. The obverse legend runs around the periphery in Latin capitals, identifying the emperor by name and title. |
|---|---|
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| Mintage | ND (317-320) - 1st Officina (A) - ND (317-320) - 2nd Officina (B) - ND (317-320) - 3rd Officina (Γ) - ND (317-320) - 4th Officina (Δ) - ND (317-320) - 5th Officina (∈) - ND (317-320) - 6th Officina (S) - ND (317-320) - 7th Officina (Z) - |
| Additional information |
Licinius I struck heavily in the IOVI CONSERVATORI series throughout his eastern mints during the years following the Edict of Milan — Jupiter as divine protector of emperors was a deliberate ideological counterweight to Constantine's increasingly Christian symbolism. The two augusti were already drifting toward open conflict, which finally came in 324 when Constantine defeated Licinius at the Battle of Chrysopolis, just across the strait from Nicomedia itself. Licinius was subsequently executed, and his coinage was subject to damnatio memoriae.
Nicomedia had been Diocletian's preferred eastern capital and remained a high-output mint. RIC VII Nicomedia 24 is among the more frequently documented issues from this phase of Licinian production.