Diocletian, AD 284-305, Tetradrachm

Diocletian, Tetradrachm, billon; reign AD 284–305, struck at Alexandria, regnal year 2 (AD 285/286). 8.40 g; 20 mm.

Obv. Α Κ Γ ΟΥΑΛ ΔΙΟΚΛΗΤΙΑΝΟϹ ϹΕΒ; laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right.

Rev. L B; eagle standing left with wings spread; regnal date (Year 2) in field.

Struck at Alexandria on a compact billon flan typical of the late provincial series, with Greek imperial legends and regnal dating. RPC X Online, ID 75916 (unassigned).

Issued early in Diocletian’s reign, this Alexandrian tetradrachm preserves Egypt’s traditional regnal dating system (L B = Year 2, AD 285/286) and Greek legends at a time when the province still operated a distinct billon currency; within a decade, Diocletian’s monetary reforms (c. AD 294–296) abolished the long-running tetradrachm standard and integrated Alexandria into the empire-wide system, marking the end of provincial Greek-legend coinage in Roman Egypt.