The Broken Bow.

While the Western Empire floundered after the sack of Rome in 410, the East was still going strong. It learned from the West's mistakes: Rome gets sacked and shortly after Constantinople builds a wall etc etc. Unfortunately this peace and tranquility was about to end in the 430's with the arrival of a steppe confederacy known as the Huns.
The Romans had known about the huns since the 370's by way of gothic refuges who told of a powerful horse mounted tribe that was steam rolling even the most hardy of barbarians to the north. By the 390's the Romans were using Huns as mercenaries, Theodosius I used them to devastating effect against Magnus Maximus at the battle of the Save in 388. After the death of Theodosius I in 395, a large lance of huns began to devastate Roman Armenia and northern Syria until they finally turned back laden with gold and prisoners.
For the next 30 odd years the Eastern Empire kept dividing the huns by supporting one leader against another, this policy seemed to work until a chieftain named Rugila helped unite the tribes into one entity.
In 440 the East and Western Roman armies were conducting successful joint operations against the Vandals in Carthage, unfortunately the huns saw this as an opportunity to raid the lightly guarded Pannonian and Illyrian provinces. The Eastern Emperor Theodosius II saw this raid as a reason to stop paying tribute the huns, he reorganized the defenses on the danube and sent an army against Atilla and his brother Bleda. The Roman army was routed and Theodosius soon found a hun army at the walls of Constantinople.
With no other option, Theodosius agreed to pay 6000 pounds of gold upfront and nearly 2000 pounds annually to maintain peace with the huns.

An uneasy peace lasted until 447 when the huns broke their word and began pillaging and sacking towns on the Danube, in response Emperor Theodosius sent the Magister Militum Arnegisclus to stop Atilla. Arnegisclus met the huns at the Utus river, the modern day Vit river, and one of antiquities bloodiest battles soon ensued. The Romans lost the battle but the huns are reported to have taken massive causalities and were too weak to try and take Constantinople. Arneglisclus is reported to have fought bravely and when his horse was killed he fought on foot and slayed many huns until he was cut down himself.
The Battle of the Utus was to be the last major battle between the Eastern Empire and the huns. After practically emptying the Imperial coffers to pay the huns off, the huns then moved west for easier prey, the Western Roman Empire. Fortunately they were defeated in 451 by the Roman general Aetius. As a bit of pay back for all the havoc caused by the huns, the new Eastern Emperor Marcian launched numerous punitive raids on hunnic lands north of the danube in 451 and 452. They were a success, and by 460 the empire of the huns was confined to the ash heap of history.

I primarily focus on 4th century Roman coinage, but the coin below was just too rare and too cheap to not get! I am currently paying it off and don't intend to "own" it until January of 2016, but I thought some of you guys (and girls) would like to see a super rare Roman Miliarensis of Emperor Theodosius II!


Theodosius II AR Miliarense. Thessalonica mint, 408-423 AD. D N THEODOSIVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped & cuirassed bust right / GLORIA ROMANORVM, Theodosius standing facing, head left, holding spear & shield; star in left field, COM in ex. RIC X 392; RSC 20 var (mintmark), 4.25 grams.

Pictures
The Walls that saved Constantinople


A rare marble bust of Emperor Theodosius II


If you would like to know more about Emperor Theodosius II, I strongly advise you to watch this.


Sources
http://www.byzantium.xronikon.com/battle.php?byzbat=b5_04
http://www.roman-empire.net/constant/theodosius-II.html
http://www.britannica.com/biography/Attila-king-of-the-Huns
The Later Roman Empire 284-602: A Social, Economic, and Administrative Survey by A.H.M. Jones

Please post your coins of Theodosius II!

Thanks!!

 

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Great coin, Mag-Max ... oh, and thanks for the sweet read (great effort)



Sadly, I don't have an exmaple to toss-into your thread (maybe next time)

 

Story of my life

 

Ditto

 

Well thanks for responding @TIF and @stevex6.
@SIliquae Might like this thread.

 

Love your beautiful coin and narrative !!!!

Well, I have an example of Theo II...and that's about where even one coin each ends---mostly modest A-4's of Arcadius, Flavius Victor, Martian etc....and almost all unphotographed.

Antioch Mint, 13 mm---and pardon the lousy photo:

 

Thanks MZ.
For those who do not know, the OP coin is not a Siliquae and is very rare. These coins usually cost an arm and a leg!

 

hmmm, I've never even heard of one (very cool, Mag-Max)

 

Theodosius II has the most common and lowest priced gold before the Byzantine period. Add a little bit of wear and being ex jewelry and you get pretty close to melt value.
The theory is that these are so common because extras were struck for the annual bribe for the Huns. It is a nice story whether true or not but the dating is right.


AE4's come with crosses with and without wreaths. Full legend coins are not common. Well struck, pretty or nicely engraved are not either. These are better than many.
Cyzicus


Constantinople - not full legend but it does have the mint mark.

 

Nice coins, doug.

 

oh wow, another cool LRS (late roman silver!) from MM! another nice write up as well!

i have this coin showing T2 as a kid on the reverse with his dad and uncle...

 

Thanks buddy.

 

Nice read, MM - you obviously do your homework! A miliarense, huh? Don't see those everyday.

 

Great Thread Magnus Maximus.

I have no Theodosius or Hunic coins to contribute. What a bummer.

 

Thanks for the kind words JA & C89.
Yeah, this coin is the pinnacle of my Late Roman Silver collection!
Now I just need to get a miliarense of Magnus Maximus and my life will be complete!

 

Thanks Bing.
@ValiantKnight Where you at bro!

 

Nice coins everyone! I know next to nothing about the 5th century Roman Empire, so appreciate the narrative @Magnus Maximus.

 

Nice!

 

Thanks guys.