The relationship between late antique emperors and the eternal city can be investigated with the help of coins on three different levels. First of all, an imperial mint was located in Rome, which operated more or less during the whole period of late antiquity. Secondly, the personification of Rome was one of the most prominent depictions on late Roman coins. Especially on the siliquae (silver coins weighing about 2.2 gr) of the western half of the Roman Empire, this personification becomes a kind of standard reverse type. Some siliquae bear the legend VRBS ROMA (FELIX) and seem to be connected with the city in a special way, while other coins show more general legends and Rome here seems to represent the Empire as a whole. Some minor variations of the depiction can be directly explained by events in Rome itself. Last but not least, some special coin series - especially from the reign of Valentinian III - reflect the close relationship between Rome and the emperor, who spent about a quarter of his reign in the eternal city.
© 2001-2024 Fundación Dialnet · Todos los derechos reservados