Philip I, 244-249, Tetradrachm

Philip I, tetradrachm, AR, AD 244–249, Antioch (AD 247); 10.21 g; 26 mm. Obv. ΑΥΤΟΚ Κ Μ ΙΟΥΛΙ ΦΙΛΙΠΠΟϹ ϹΕΒ; laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Rev. ΔΗΜΑΡΧ ΕΞΟΥϹΙΑϹ ΥΠΑ ΤΟ Γ; eagle standing facing, head left, wings spread, wreath in beak; S C between legs; ΑΝΤΙΟΧΙΑ in exergue. Struck at Antioch on the provincial tetradrachm module; die axis for the series is typically 12h. RPC Online VIII 29005.

This tetradrachm represents the principal silver denomination of Roman Syria under Philip I, struck at Antioch, the region’s chief mint. The reverse legend records tribunician power and the emperor’s third consulship (ΥΠΑ ΤΟ Γ), providing a secure date in AD 247. The eagle with wreath is the long-standing Antiochene type, while the inclusion of S C preserves the senatorial authorization formula on provincial silver. These issues circulated widely across Syria and neighboring provinces and reflect imperial monetary integration in the East during Philip’s reign, which also encompassed the millennium of Rome in AD 248.