Aigeai Medallion With Athena — Certificate Of Authenticity

This large provincial bronze struck at Aigeai (Cilicia) in the name of Severus Alexander (AD 222–235) belongs to the sought-after civic issues of very large module, prized for their “medallion-like” presence and for the strength of a fully Greek visual language: imperial portrait and Greek titulature on the obverse, helmeted Athena on the reverse, accompanied by a date in letters (Ε–ΟC / EOC) typical of the city’s civic-era dating systems.

From the photographs, the coin appears on a broad flan, yet naturally irregular, with small peripheral losses and edge tensions consistent with ancient striking on heavy modules. The surface shows a brown patina nuanced with brown-green, with lighter highlights on raised areas (friction points and high relief) and darker recesses, indicating long-term, stable metal evolution.

Under raking light, the relief displays continuous modeling (portrait, lettering, helmet/aegis), with legend edges still active in places and relief-to-field transitions consistent with a hammer-struck coin on a prepared flan, within the limits of what the images allow to establish. Wear appears generally even on exposed points (face, hair/wreath, shoulder; helmet crest and aegis on the reverse), with no immediate visual discordance in style or composition.

The typology is clearly in place: draped and cuirassed bust right, in an eastern provincial style, with facial volumes still readable (forehead, nasal ridge, chin) and hair rendered in short locks, typical of Severus Alexander’s portraiture on Greek coinage.

The Greek legend appears in segments around the perimeter, in the expected development for Aigeai:
ΑΥΤ Κ Μ ΑΥΡ ϹЄΥ ΑΛЄΞΑΝΔΡΟϹ ϹЄΒ
(circular layout adapted to the large module, with legibility varying according to centering, wear, and edge irregularities).

The reverse shows Athena in bust right, wearing a crested helmet and the aegis, rendered by raised lines at the neck and shoulder. The iconography remains immediately expressive: Athena, a figure of protection and civic legitimacy, is given strong presence here, with the helmet dominating the field.

The surrounding legend belongs to Aigeai’s civic-honorific register, commonly reported in market references in the form:
ΑΔΡΙ ΑΛЄΞΑΝΔΡΟΥΠΟ ΑΙΓΑΙⲰΝ
with a date in letters Ε–ΟC / EOC placed in the field. The combination “helmeted Athena + civic titulature + date” matches the typological scheme recorded for this type; exact letter-by-letter reading may vary with angle, wear, and the peripheral weaknesses visible in the photographs.

Authority: Severus Alexander, reign AD 222–235 (provincial coinage).

Mint: Aigeai (Cilicia).

Date: type dated by Ε–ΟC / EOC (given as year 275 = AD 228/9 in a reference notice for the same type).

Denomination: large bronze / civic medallion (exceptional module).

Metal: Æ (copper-alloy).

Module: 39 mm.

Weight: 22.79 g.

Obverse: ΑΥΤ Κ Μ ΑΥΡ ϹЄΥ ΑΛЄΞΑΝΔΡΟϹ ϹЄΒ, draped and cuirassed bust right.

Reverse: helmeted Athena, bust right, Ε–ΟC / EOC in the field; civic legend ΑΔΡΙ … ΑΙΓΑΙⲰΝ (customary reading).

References (documentary framing): BMC tradition and specialized market notices; linked to the broader modern corpus on Aigeai (Haymann / academic studies).

Aigeai, a major Cilician port (modern Yumurtalık), developed abundant civic coinage in the imperial period, where imagery and titulature shaped the city’s public identity: valorizing epithets, honorific references, and iconographies of strong cultural resonance. In this setting, Athena naturally belongs to the repertoire of protective, “civic” figures, while dating by local era (the EOC mark) anchors the issue within the community’s internal chronology.

For a collection, this medallion gathers qualities rarely combined in provincial coinage:

• a spectacular large module, with immediate visual impact in hand;

• the Empire’s cultural bilingualism: Roman emperor, Greek legends;

• helmeted Athena in an expressive style, a cross-cutting theme appealing both to iconography enthusiasts and collectors of eastern cities;

• rarity of this precise type, noted in specialized collecting circles.

In accordance with our practices, each specimen is examined, described, and accompanied by a certificate of authenticity consistent with the standards of the art and heritage market; the study is conducted with careful observation under ×10 magnification and raking light, and with typological, stylistic, and metrological consistency checked against available references.

Provenance is professional European; acquisition forms part of a specialized international transaction, carried out within an established numismatic network and validated by expertise, according to the most protective practices for the collector.

France: Colissimo shipment with signature and insurance.
International: UPS shipment with signature and insurance.
Reinforced numismatic packaging (padding, shock protection, discreet conditioning).