Potin Tetradrachm - Maximian - Alexandria - Eirene Reverse

This billon tetradrachm was struck at Alexandria under Maximian, who ruled as co-emperor with Diocletian from 286 to 305 AD. The regnal date L A in the fields marks it as a first-year issue. The obverse shows the draped, cuirassed bust of Maximian viewed from the front, with a Greek legend giving his imperial titles, in keeping with Alexandria's long tradition of striking its own Greek-legended coinage separate from the rest of the empire.

The reverse depicts a standing female figure facing left, holding a branch in her right hand and a scepter under her left arm. The attributes point most plausibly to Eirene, the Greek personification of peace and counterpart to the Roman Pax, whose standard iconography includes an olive branch and a scepter. The branch signals peace and concord, while the scepter conveys stable, legitimate authority, together presenting Maximian's rule as one of settled order rather than active conflict.

20 mm

7.94 g