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Tetradrachm
| Issuer | Laodikeia (Phrygia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 53 BC - 51 BC |
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| Currency | Cistophoric drachm |
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| Obverse description | Cista mystica depicted at center, its lid open with a serpent emerging and coiling upward to the right, rendered in high relief. The sacred basket sits on a low base, its wicker-work body rendered in fine detail. The entire central device is encircled by a lush ivy wreath composed of alternating ivy leaves and berry clusters, with no surrounding legend. |
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| Reverse lettering | AP PVLCHER AP F PROCOS ΛAO ΑΠOΛΛΩNIOΣ ΔAMOKPATOΥ ΞΩΣIMOΣ |
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| Additional information |
Laodikeia ad Lycum was one of the most prosperous cities in the Roman province of Asia during the late Republic, its wealth built on banking, wool trade, and a medical school renowned throughout the ancient world. This tetradrachm falls within the brief window when Cicero governed Cilicia — a province that then included much of southern and western Asia Minor — and his correspondence from 51 BC records the chronic difficulty of maintaining specie circulation in the region's cities amid Roman tax extraction and the financial disruptions of the late Republic.
The BMC Greek 19 type belongs to Laodikeia's autonomous civic coinage, issued under the formal permission of Rome but asserting local identity through its types.