Constantine I 306-337 A.D.
Coin Description | Constantine I The Great, AE 19mm, Grade ??, silvered bronze (pieces of silvering can be clearly seen) the obverse has almost no silvering and is missing its patina in several places, VM 85, RBC 352j, RIC VII Cyzicus 24 (the dot making it an unlisted variant). |
Obverse | The portrait is of Constantine a laureate bust facing right. The legend reads CONSTANTINVS AVG meaning: CONSTANTINVS (his name) AVG Augustus which defines him as being the emperor. The legend is broken which is a sign of the highest respect and signifies him as the senior Augustus |
Reverse |
The reverse shows a campgate (watchtower) with two signal beacons and a star between them.The legend reads PROVIDENTIAE AVGG which translates as "The foresight of the emperors". The second G in AVGG means that there is another legitimate ruler with the title of Augustus, in this case Licinius who was actually already defeated by Constantine when this coin was minted. For a bit more on Providentia see here. |
Mint | The exergue reads SMKε meaning the 5th workshop (epsilon) of the Cyzicus, minted between 324 and 330 A.D. |
The Entire Story | The entire story of this coin would read: Constantine the Great Augustus. The foresight of the emperors in combination with the campgate might show that the emperors are building extra defenses for the future defense of the empire. |