THEODOSIUS I, Nike Drags Captive, Chi-Rho Christogram ☧, Imperial Roman Coin

Description

Imperial Roman Coin
Theodosius I, Roman Emperor from  379-395 A.D.
The son of a famous general, Theodosius I (the Great) followed in his father's footsteps, both having had illustrious military careers.
He was Emperor of the eastern portion of the empire from 378-392 AD, sharing with the western Emperors, Valens and Valentinian II.  He became Emperor of the entire empire for the final 3 years of his reign.
During the later years of his life he became the first Roman emperor to reverse centuries of Roman governmental policy on the issue of religious persecution. Christians had been persecuted since the first century and then for the previous 50-75 years Christianity coexisted mostly peacefully with pagan rituals.  However, Theodosius began the active persecution and steady elimination of all non-christian sects and their temples, a policy that would be vigorously followed by all succeeding emperors.  His two sons, Arcadius and Honorius, ruled a split empire after his death in 395 AD.
SALVS REIPVBLICAE
The legend on this coin,
SALVS REIPVBLICAE
, had been used frequently by Roman Emperors.   These AE4 coins are also known as a "God Save the Republic" coin.  Our president still uses a familiar phrase when he says, "And may God bless the United States of America". It is also known as an "Health of the Empire" coin.  This is very ironic because at this time the Roman Empire was not in good health at all as Rome was soon to be routed by the Visigoths 409 AD.  It turns out that the leading general of the Visigoth army was Alaric, a man who had trained in Theodosius' "school for generals" and had actually fought and won as part of the Roman army in 394 AD.
On this coin, winged Victory (NIKE) drags a captive by the hair while holding a trophy over her shoulder.
The reverse of this coin depicts a
Chi-Rho
emblem. This
christogram
is formed by superimposing the first two letters in the Greek spelling of the word Christ (Greek: "Χριστός" ),
chi
= ch and
rho
= r, in such a way to produce the monogram
☧
.
Another variant was a cross instead of an X superimposed on a P.
Constantine the Great
was said to have seen this symbol in a vision the night before a huge battle just outside of Rome in 312 AD.  The next day he ordered his soldiers to paint the symbol on their shields. Guess who won the battle!  Subsequently, the Chi-Rho banner (called a
labarum
) led Roman troops into battle for centuries and is still used in Christian worship today.
This coin was minted in the ancient city of
Cyzicus, or Kyzikos, (
Κύζικος)
which is located on the southern shore of the Hellespont in what is now western Turkey.
During the pre-Greek through the Roman periods it was one of the greatest cities of the ancient world.
It was destroyed by a series of earthquakes during the Byzantine and early Arab periods.
Its remaining archeology includes a very large (150 meter in diameter) 3
rd
century B.C.
amphitheater and foundations and columns of Hadrian’s Temple. The columns of this temple were 70 feet tall.
This coin was struck in one of many officinae or workshops in the city.
Officinae
were designated by a different letter of the Greek or Roman alphabets (in the case of this coin by the letter
B
indicating that it was struck in the 2nd officina), or by certain recognizable symbols such as palm branches, dots, stars, and sunrises.
Here are this small coin's attributes:
THEODOSIUS I,  AE4 (12-13 mm, 1.19 gm)
OBV:
DN THEODOSIVS PF AVG, pearl-diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right
REV:
SALVS REI-PVBLICAE, Victory walking left, holding trophy on shoulder and dragging captive behind her; Chi-Rho in left field
EXE:  SMKB    Cyzicus mint     RIC 26b,30a      388-392 A.D.
As usual, the pictures really don't do justice. Let me know if you have questions.
Absolute Guarantee of Authenticity
I have collected Roman coins for many years and have always bought coins from trusted, reputable dealers. The coins I sell are ancient currency minted under the authority of the Roman Empire.  The details I describe (emperor, location, legends, etc) are derived from well-known and certified attribution sources.  The descriptions are guaranteed accurate as much as the condition of the coin allows.  This
Guarantee of Authenticity
does not make any claim or estimate of the value or grades of the coin(s).
I will send each coin that I have attributed in a 2X2 coin holder on which is written all important identifiable legends and features.
ALL OF MY ITEMS COME WITH A GUARANTEE OF SATISFACTION , IF ANY ITEM IS NOT AS DESCRIBED IT CAN BE RETURNED IN ITS ORIGINAL CONDITION FOR A REFUND OF THE PURCHASE PRICE.
SHIPPING & HANDLING POLICY
I mail all orders in an appropriately sized bubble envelope that includes tracking and delivery confirmation. This is something that protects the merchandise better and allows you to follow your order online.  For this service, buyers will
only be charged one flat rate
charge of .00
which will cover the costs of any number of auctions purchased. (International buyers, see below) So, yes, I will
combine shipping and handling costs if you win multiple auctions
.
PayPal only, please.