Galerius (as Caesar), AE follis, Ticinum

Galerius (as Caesar), AE follis, Ticinum, 2nd officina, c. AD 298-299. Obv. MAXIMIANVS NOB CAES Laureate head right. Rev. GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI Genius of the Roman People standing left, modius on head, chlamys over shoulder, holding patera and cornucopiae; star in left field; exergue ST (Ticinum, 2nd workshop). RIC VI Ticinum 33b; cf. Sear 14022. The strike is sharp.

When Diocletian created the Tetrarchy in AD 293, Gaius Galerius Valerius Maximianus was elevated to nobilissimus Caesar of the eastern half of the empire. The large bronze folles introduced soon after (c. 294-296) carried the standard reverse GENIO POPVLI ROMANI, invoking the protective Genius of the Roman state and underscoring the regime’s promise of renewal. Pieces with the legend MAXIMIANVS NOB CAES and the mint-mark ST were struck at Ticinum (modern Pavia), a mint established to serve the northern Italian frontier; the star in the field marks the second officina. These coins circulated alongside similar folles for Diocletian, Maximian Herculius and Constantius, visually reinforcing the collegiate nature of imperial authority in the first Tetrarchy.