Provincial issue of the pentassarion denomination struck at Marcianopolis in Moesia Inferior under the authority of Furius Pontianus (legatus consularis) belongs to a compact and well-defined series produced during the joint reign of Macrinus and Diadumenian. This group of emissions reflects a brief but clearly attested phase of dynastic consolidation, directly expressed through its iconographic program.
The obverse shows confronted heads of both rulers (vis-à-vis), with the legend AYT K M OΠEΛ CEV MAKPEINOC K M OΠEΛ ANTΩNEINOC, forming a direct visual statement of co-rule and succession.
The reverse depicts Asclepius standing left, leaning on a staff entwined by a serpent, with the legend YΠ ΠONTIANOY MAPKIANOΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ and the letter E in the field, indicating the pentassarion denomination. Asclepius, as a healing deity, occupies a well-attested place in the local iconographic repertoire of the Danubian provinces, where therapeutic cults were widely established and archaeologically documented.
The presence of the formula YΠ ΠONTIANOY identifies the provincial governor responsible for the issue, a consistent and historically significant feature of Marcianopolis coinage, enabling precise attribution within the administrative framework of Moesia Inferior.
Roman Provincial
Moesia Inferior, Marcianopolis, Macrinus and Diadumenian, Pentassarion
Obverse: busts of Macrinus and Diadumenian vis à vis
AYT K M OΠEΛ CEV MAKPEINOC K M OΠEΛ ANTΩNEINOC
Reverse: Asklepios standing left, holding serpent-entwined staff, in right field E (mark of value)
YΠ ΠONTIANOY MAPKIANOΠΟΛΙΤΩΝ
Diameter 26 mm, weight 13.38 g
