LEVANTINE REGION. Uncertain, 2/3 AD. Weight of 1 Mina (Lead, 122 mm, 695.00 g), Year 9 = SE 314 = 2/3 AD. EΤΟΥC Θʹ, ΚΑ̣Τ̣Α̣ Δ̣Ε̣ ΤΟΝ ΠΡΟΤΕΡΟΝ ΑΡΙΘ̣ΜΟ̣Ν̣ ΔΙ̣Τ̣ / ΔHM-OCIA / M-NA Cornucopiae; monogram in upper right field. Rev. Lattice work design. Arethusa (IGLS V 2085). Extremely rare, and of great historical interest. Some pitting, otherwise, very fine.


This remarkable and highly intriguing weight vividly captures the political and cultural shift from the Hellenistic world to Roman rule. Its inscription dates it to year 9 of a new local era. Yet - perhaps because this era was still unfamiliar and people continued to reckon by the well-known Seleukid era - the date is also given in the older system to prevent misunderstanding: ΕΤΟΥΣ Θʹ, ΚΑΤΑ ΔΕ ΤΟΝ ΠΡΟΤΕΡΟΝ ΑΡΙΘΜΟΝ ΔΙT, literally, 'Year 9; but according to the earlier reckoning (era), 314.'

In other words, the new local year 9 is explicitly converted into Seleukid year 314, which places the piece in 2/3 AD. This equivalence also implies that the new era began in 7/6 or 6/5 BC.

Although the impressive weight cannot be assigned to a specific city, such double dating - translating a newly introduced civic era into the established Seleukid era - is attested elsewhere. The formula belongs to moments of transition, when Hellenistic monarchies gave way to Roman imperial power and cities adopted new eras, often cast as commemorating a 'liberation.' In practice, day-to-day life in most cities changed little; the new eras functioned above all as honors for Roman authorities, whether generals, magistrates, or the first emperor.