Centenionalis — Constans — Gloria Exercitus — Chi Rho

Obverse: CONSTANS P F AVG, jeweled-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Constans right

Reverse: GLORIA EXERCITVS ("the glory of the army"), two soldiers standing on either side of a Chi-Rho standard

Mass: 1.29 g

Diameter: 15.5 mm

The reverse type GLORIA EXERCITVS celebrates the Roman army as the foundation of imperial power, but the Chi-Rho standard gives this issue a distinctly Christian character. The two soldiers flank the standard bearing the monogram of Christ, combining traditional military imagery with the Christian symbolism that had become increasingly important in imperial propaganda during the Constantinian dynasty. The design therefore presents the army as both the instrument of Roman power and a force operating under Christian imperial authority.

Constans ruled the Roman Empire from AD 337 to 350, governing the western provinces after the death of his father Constantine the Great and sharing the empire with his brothers Constantine II and Constantius II. The centenionalis was a small bronze denomination of the fourth-century monetary system, and the continued use of GLORIA EXERCITVS reverses reflects the central importance of the army in sustaining imperial authority. The Chi-Rho standard on this variant also illustrates how Christian imagery became integrated into the traditional visual language of Roman military coinage.