Valentinian II Bronze AE2 RIC IX Thessalonica 37B

Monetary Context and the AE2 Reform

The introduction of the AE2 denomination under the REPARATIO REIPVB type marks one of the most concerted monetary interventions of the late fourth century. Following the death of Valens at the Battle of Adrianople in AD 378, the newly constituted imperial college comprising Gratian, Valentinian II, and Theodosius I sought to reassert imperial authority across both eastern and western administrative spheres. For over two decades, the circulation pool had become dominated by deteriorating, lightweight AE3 and AE4 nummi from earlier Constantinian and Valentinianic series. The creation of a broad, substantial bronze coin weighing between 4.5 and 5.5 grams offered the population a visually impressive and reliable medium for everyday market transactions. While historical sources rarely record the official Latin names of fourth-century base metal denominations, numismatists frequently connect this AE2 series to the legal term maiorina or pecunia maior. This heavy bronze coinage was intended to restore public confidence in base metal currency, which had suffered from severe inflationary pressure and illicit clipping. By striking this reform issue concurrently across all active imperial mints, the administration re-established an integrated imperial standard in billon and copper alloy. For Valentinian II, who was still a youth ruling under collegiate supervision, participation in this standardized coinage reinforced his constitutional parity with Gratian and Theodosius.

Production and the Thessalonica Mint

Thessalonica occupied an exceptional strategic and logistical position during the early reign of Theodosius I. Situated along the Via Egnatia, the city served as a primary military depot, imperial residence, and administrative pivot between the Illyrian frontier and the eastern capital of Constantinople. The Thessalonican mint responded directly to the immense logistical demands created by Gothic campaigns and the presence of imperial field armies. Production of RIC IX Thessalonica 37B was executed with notable technical competence. Flans were cast, trimmed, and hot-struck using carefully engraved iron dies. The mint operated with multiple distinct workshops, or officinae, which differentiated their output through Greek alphabetical numerals appended to the mint signature in the exergue, such as TES followed by marks like Alpha, Beta, or Gamma, alongside supplementary field symbols in select phases. Die engraving at Thessalonica was distinguished by a coherent regional style characterized by bold facial profiles, neat linear lettering, and balanced reverse figures. The metallurgical composition of the alloy consisted predominantly of copper with moderate quantities of lead added to improve molten flow during casting, alongside trace amounts of silver typical of late Roman billon issues.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of RIC IX Thessalonica 37B presents a right-facing portrait bust of Valentinian II, rendered with imperial regalia appropriate to his Augustus rank. His head is bound by a pearl diadem, the standard diadema of late Roman rulers consisting of twin rows of pearls secured at the back of the head with stylized ribbons or lemnisci. The bust is depicted as draped and cuirassed, combining the military armor of a supreme commander with the paludamentum or imperial cloak pinned at the right shoulder. In contrast to the mature, bearded portraits of earlier centuries or the bearded depictions of rare late usurpers, Valentinian II is represented with a youthful, clean-shaven countenance. Thessalonican die cutters rendered the portrait with smooth facial contours, a straight nose, large almond-shaped eyes, and stylized hair falling in neat horizontal locks beneath the diadem. This stylized approach was not designed to capture realistic individual portraiture, but rather to convey dynastic legitimacy, divinely sanctioned serenity, and unwavering imperial majesty in alignment with contemporary aesthetic conventions across the empire.

Reverse Iconography: The Restoration of the State

The reverse of the coin bears an elaborate allegorical composition laden with profound ideological significance. An imperial figure stands facing front with his head turned toward the left, clad in full military dress. In his extended right hand, he reaches down to lift a kneeling woman who wears a mural or turreted crown upon her head. In his left hand, the emperor cradles a miniature Victory who stands balanced upon a globe, holding out a celebratory wreath toward him. The kneeling woman personifies the Res Publica, the Roman commonwealth or state, while her turreted headdress symbolizes imperial cities and fortified civic communities. Her posture of supplication, balanced by the benevolent, elevating gesture of the ruler, creates an explicit narrative of imperial rescue. The emperor does not merely govern; he actively raises a fallen empire from distress and vulnerability. The miniature Victory on the globe confirms that this restoration is achieved through divinely favored military dominion over the known world. By employing this standardized iconography across all collegiate mints, the imperial court sought to dispel public anxieties caused by frontier instability and civil uncertainty.

Inscriptions and Epigraphic Meaning

The inscriptions on RIC IX Thessalonica 37B reinforce the constitutional and political messaging communicated through the visual designs. The obverse legend reads D N VALENTINIANVS P F AVG, representing a fully standard imperial formula: Dominus Noster Valentinianus Pius Felix Augustus. The title Dominus Noster, meaning Our Lord, reflects late Roman autocratic protocol, while Pius Felix asserts the ruler's piety toward the divine and fortune in state affairs. The reverse legend is rendered as REPARATIO-REIPVB, abbreviating Reparatio Reipublicae, meaning The Restoration of the Commonwealth. Engravers frequently introduced a clean hyphenation or visual break in the legend across the top field to accommodate the head and raised hand of the central figure. In the exergual area beneath the ground line, the mint signature identifies production at Thessalonica, typically appearing as TES followed by an officina marker. The lettering displays the disciplined epigraphy typical of fourth-century Roman mints, using clear Latin capitals with slender vertical strokes and compact serif terminals.

Typology and Chronological Sequence

Within the framework established in volume nine of The Roman Imperial Coinage, type 37 at Thessalonica is divided among the ruling Augusti, with RIC IX Thessalonica 37B specifically assigned to the issues struck in the name of Valentinian II. The broader REPARATIO REIPVB AE2 series began production around AD 378 or 379 following the accession of Theodosius I, who was elevated to the purple by Gratian in January AD 378. Thessalonica operated as a joint collegiate mint, striking parallel emissions for Gratian, Valentinian II, and Theodosius I. In the early stages of this issue, Gratian held primacy as the senior Augustus, but identical reverse typologies ensured equal symbolic standing for the juvenile Valentinian II. The series continued uninterrupted until approximately AD 383, when political upheaval, including the usurpation of Magnus Maximus in the West and the death of Gratian, fundamentally reshaped the imperial administration. Following AD 383, the AE2 denomination began to decline in production volume and average flan diameter, ultimately yielding to lighter bronze denominations like the AE3 and AE4 during the subsequent decade.

Circulation, Hoards, and Archaeological Context

RIC IX Thessalonica 37B was minted in substantial quantities to meet civilian market needs and military payrolls along the southern Danubian and Aegean zones. Archaeological excavations across Greece, the southern Balkans, and Macedonia regularly uncover specimens of this issue in both urban and rural contexts. The denomination circulated widely throughout Illyricum and the central Mediterranean, often traveling alongside contemporaneous emissions produced at Siscia, Rome, Sirmium, and Constantinople. Hoard evidence demonstrates that REPARATIO REIPVB AE2 bronzes enjoyed sustained circulation for several decades, remaining in use well into the early fifth century. Because subsequent bronze emissions struck under Theodosius I, Arcadius, and Honorius were significantly smaller in size and weight, older AE2 pieces were often hoarded or preferentially retained by local populations as reliable stores of base-metal value. Many surviving examples exhibit substantial wear from prolonged commercial transactions, with smooth rims and softened high points testifying to their enduring utility in day-to-day Roman economic life.

References

1. Catalogue of Late Roman Coins in the Dumbarton Oaks Collection and in the Whittemore Collection. pp. 82-89
2. Roman Imperial Coinage: Late Fourth-Century Bronze Issues. Thessalonica mint survey
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IX Thessalonica 37B. ric.9.thes.37B
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume IX: Valentinian I to Theodosius I. pp. 180-182