RIC Volume VI, Lugdunum, No. 17a: FL VAL CONSTANTIVS NOB C .............................. GENIO POPV -- LI ROMANI Fully silvered Well centered with clear inscriptions Hard to find coins of this series in this condition Ex. CGB (France) 10.5 gm Re-cap: In 293 Diocletian finalized the Institution of a Tetrarchy -- government of the Empire by four interacting rulers -- two Augusti assisted by two subordinate Caesars, which each Augustus would personally select. The two Caesars, chosen because of their proven leadership abilities, assisted the Augusti with civil administration and command of the armies. Caius Galerius Valerius Maximianus was chosen by Diocletian to be his Caesar of the East and Flavius Valerius Constantius was chosen by Maximian Herculius be his Caesar of the West. The first assignment given Constantius by Maximian Herculius was to remove Carausius, the usurper Augustus of secessionist Britain, and restore that former possession to the Empire. Constantius thereupon beseiged and captured Boulogne and then wrested coastal Gaul from Carausius. Constantius now set about planning the invasion, occupation and restoration of secessionist Britain to the Empire. One of the first orders of business for Constantius in 294 was to insure that a supply of reformed aes coinage (folles) - now the commonplace legal tender of the Roman Empire - was available for use not only by his occupying force, but also by the British civilian populace. To that end Constantius established a Mint in Gaul (exact location usually listed as unknown, although some French sources list it as Boulogne), manned by Lugdunese workers, to produce this invasion coinage - unmarked (i.e. without a mint mark) issued in the names of Diocletian & Maximian Herculius as Augusti and Constantius & Galerius Maximian as Caesars. Notes In his introductory notes to RIC VI, Londinium, Sutherland states that "Bastien is to be followed in regarding the umarked coins of Class I as an issue prepared in advance for Constantius' invasion of Britain in 296". Coin obverses depict right facing busts with bare neck truncation and laureate heads with the long laurel wreath ribbon laying on the neck. The Genius of the Roman People reverse depiction and inscription is standard with no mint mark. The inscriptional lettering is relatively large with delicate letterforms. Reverse axis is 6 or 12 o'clock. Weight range is 10.5 to 8.75 gm. Invasion Coinage produced at (unknown) Mint in Gaul RIC Volume VI, Lugdunum, Group I, (iv), folles, Class I, No. 14-21, c. 296, 10.5-8.75 gm. No. 14a - Diocletian: IMP C DIOCLETIANVS PF AVG ............................. GENIO POPV -- LI ROMANI 9.8 gm No. 14b - Maximian Herculius: IMP C MAXIMIANVS PF AVG ................................. GENIO POP -- VLI ROMANI 8.9 gm No. 17a - Constantius: FL VAL CONSTANTIVS NOB C .............................. GENIO POPV -- LI ROMANI 10.1 gm Partially silvered No. 17b - Galerius Maximian: C VAL MAXIMIANVS NOB C .............................. GENIO POPV -- LI ROMANI 10.3 gm. As depicted in RIC Volume VI, Plate 3.
