Abstract

In 2019, 34 bronze and 16 gold coins (solidi) were
discovered at one archaeological excavation in Marcianopolis. The
coins were found scattered under the collapsed remains of a burned
building. The conflagration had partially fired the mud-brick walls,
which were built on top of a stone base. The building was probably
destroyed when Huns captured the city in 447 AD. The bronze coins
were found in poor condition due to the fire’s high temperature
and the time they subsequently spent in the ground. They can most
generally be dated to the 4th – 5th century. The gold coins are in good
condition, with the relief preserved. The images and inscriptions are
clear and legible. The find was taken to the Museum of Mosaics in
Devnia.
Nearby, south-west of the sector under study, three other solidi
were found by a treasure hunter(s) with a metal detector. The coins
were later (in 1986) taken to the Varna Regional Museum of History.
They are also featured in the catalogue.
The gold coins are discussed in this preliminary paper. The
aim is to make them available to specialists as quickly and easily as
possible.
Emperors featured on the coins: Arcadius (395 – 408) – 2 coins,
Theodosius II (402 – 450) – 13 coins and Valentinian III (425 – 455)
– 1 coin. In the case of Arcadius and Theodosius II, the coins were
made at the Constantinople mint, whereas those of Valentinian III
were minted in Rome.
The coins form three groups based on the obverse images.
Group One (Cat. № 1 – 5, 7, 9 – 19): The emperor (three quarters,
facing right) wearing a helmet and a pearl diadem is depicted as a
bust in relief. His face is clean shaven. He is dressed in military
clothes. He is holding a spear in his right hand, which is slung over
his right shoulder and behind his head. The left shoulder and arm
are hidden by the upper part of a shield decorated with a stylised
image of the emperor as a horseman stabbing an enemy.
Coins with such iconography were minted by a series of emperors
from the late 4th – early 5th century (from 397, the time of Arcadius
(395 – 408) and Honorius (395 – 423), and later, from 402, together
with Theodosius II (402 – 450)) until the early 6th century. In the
6th century, the image was more portrait-like than idealised. Such
iconography was used until the end of the 7th century, with the rulers’
faces now with pronounced beards. In the last similar specimens
from the early 8th century, the emperor is holding the spear in front
of his chest, resting on his left shoulder.
Group Two (Cat. № 8): The ruler is shown as a bust in relief,
facing right and wearing a pearl diadem. He is dressed in armour
and draped clothing.
The profile image chronologically precedes the face-forward
depiction, and came into use at the same time as the solidi.
Group Three (Cat. № 6): The empress is shown as a bust in
relief, facing right. She is wearing a necklace, earrings and a pearl
tiara, and her hair is styled. She is clothed in a draped dress. God’s
hand is above her, about to put a crown on her head.
The coin was minted in honour of the coronation of Aelia Eudocia,
wife of Theodosius II, when she received the title of Augusta. The
same iconography is used also to depict several other empresses
from the era: Aelia Pulcheria, Aelia Galla Placidia, Licinia Eudoxia,
and Aelia Verina. The difference in the portrait features of the female
images is more noticeable.
The coins form five groups based on the reverse images.
Group One (Cat. № 5, 6): Victoria is shown in relief, standing,
with the body facing forward and the head facing left. She is
dressed in a chiton and chlamys. In her right hand, she is holding a
decorated cross with a high handle, propped on the ground. There is
an octagonal star in the space above.
Group Two (Cat. № 13 – 16, 19): A female figure wearing a
Roman helmet (embodiment of Constantinople, the New Rome) is
depicted. She is sitting on a throne, facing to the left. The head is
in profile to the left. In her right hand, she is holding a globe (orb)
with a cross on it, and in her left hand, she is holding a sceptre and
leaning against a shield that is resting on the right side of the throne.
There is an octagonal star in the right field.
Group Three (Cat. № 1 – 4, 17, 18): Constantinople (embodiment
of the city) is sitting on a throne, her body facing forward. Her head
is facing right and she is wearing a helmet. She is clad in a draped
dress. She is holding a spear in her right hand and a globe with a
statue of Victoria on top in her left hand. The front of a ship can be
seen next to her right leg. There is an octagonal star in the space on
the left.
Group Four (Cat. № 7): Two male figures (emperors). One is
sitting on a throne, his feet resting on a pillow, and the other is
standing. Dressed in consular robes, they are facing forward. They
are holding cruciform sceptres in their left hands and mappae in
their right hands. Above them is an octagonal star.
The coin was minted in honour of the first joint consulate of
Theodosius II (eleventh for him) and Valentinian III (first for him).
The last one is Caesar (standing) before becoming Augustus.
Group (Cat. № 9 – 12): Two emperors are depicted facing
forward, sitting on a double throne, with haloes above their heads.
They are dressed in consular clothes. They are holding cruciform
sceptres in their left hands and mappae in their right hands. Their
feet are resting on pillows (in Cat. № 10, there is no pillow under the
feet of Theodosius II). There is an octagonal star above their heads.
The coin was minted in honour of the second joint consulate of
Theodosius II (twelfth for him) and Valentinian III (second for him),
who was now Augustus, i.e. equal to Theodosius II.
Group Six (Cat. № 8): Two emperors standing, facing forward.
One of them is wearing a hat with a ‘bobble-shaped’ decoration (?)
on top. The other is being crowned by the hand of God. They are
dressed in draped clothes and armour. They are wearing boots with
pendants. They are holding long crosses in their right hands and
globes in their left ones. A snake with a human head can be seen on
the ground between them. The letter R is written in the left space and
the letter M in the right one.
The coin was minted in honour of the coronation of Valentinian III
as Augustus, becoming an equal to Theodosius II.
Two of the coins with Theodosius II say VOT XX MVLT XXX,
which means “Dedicated to his twentieth anniversary, let him
reach the thirtieth”. The coins were minted to mark the twentieth
anniversary of his proclamation as Augustus.
Another two coins say VOT XXX – MVLT XXXX, which means
“Dedicated to his thirtieth anniversary, let him reach the fortieth”.
The coins were minted to mark the thirtieth anniversary of his
proclamation as Augustus.
The coins discussed in this paper show a rich variety in the
stories told and the inscriptions written on both sides.
The earliest issue of gold coins is from 403 – 408 and the latest
one from 430 – 440. Judging by the excellent condition in which they
are preserved, they have clearly not been in active circulation, but
must have been kept in a vault or coffer by the destroyed building’s
owner. They were left without an owner, most likely when the city
was destroyed during the Hun invasion in 447.
Gold coins of this denomination and from the same century have
been found in other fortified hubs in this part of the Moesia Secunda
Province. The numerous hidden artefacts found across the region
have provided valuable information about the direction and time of
various barbarian invasions and the devastation they caused.
The presence of coins reflects the economic standing of
Marcianopolis and the state of trade at the time. The archaeological
environment in which the coins were found has supplemented the
written records of political and military events in the Empire and
in the Moesia Secunda Province around the mid-5th century. The
devastating Hun invasions at that time left lasting traces in the Balkan
provinces, and we come across them while studying Marcianopolis
and other urban centres.