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Solidus - Basiliscus VICTORIA AVGGG, Constantinopolis
| Issuer | Eastern Roman Empire |
|---|---|
| Year | 475-476 |
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| Currency | Solidus (330-476) |
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| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Latin |
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| Reverse description | The winged figure of Victory stands facing left in the field, draped in flowing robes and wearing a stephane crown, holding a long jewelled cross with both hands. A star appears in the upper right field. The officina letter Γ is positioned to the right of the figure. The Latin legend VICTORIA AVGGG runs around the periphery, while the mint mark CONOB appears in the exergue, denoting Constantinople and confirming the coin's full-weight gold standard. |
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| Additional information |
Basiliscus seized power in early 475 by exploiting the unpopularity of Zeno, forcing the legitimate emperor to flee Constantinople for Isauria. His reign lasted just twenty months before Zeno returned with an Isaurian army and Basiliscus surrendered, reportedly after being promised his life — a promise kept technically, if cruelly, by imprisoning him and his family in a dry cistern in Cappadocia where they starved to death.
The extreme brevity of the usurpation makes solidi of Basiliscus genuinely scarce in any grade. RIC X 1003 is the principal Constantinople issue of his reign.