Zeno and Leo Caesar, 476-477. Nummus (Bronze, 14 mm, 0.91 g, 6 h), Constantinopolis. [D N ZЄN]O PЄ VG Helmeted, draped and cuirassed bust of Zeno to right. Rev. [S C LЄO...?] Victory advancing left, holding wreath in her right hand and dragging capive with her left hand; in field to left, staurogram. RIC 947. Rare and with attractive earthen deposits on a dark patina. Minor spot of corrosion on the reverse, otherwise, very fine.


This rare joint issue of Zeno and Leo Caesar was struck after Zeno’s return to the throne in 476. The general Armatus had supported Zeno against the usurper Basiliscus and was apparently rewarded with the elevation of his son to the rank of Caesar. The boy, originally named Basiliscus, was renamed Leo because of the now-discredited name and appears on the coinage as novus Caesar. This was less a true co-rule than the political price of loyalty, as well as a public assertion of stability after Zeno’s restoration. The arrangement was short-lived: in 477 Zeno had Armatus eliminated, while Leo was spared, stripped of power, and apparently directed into an ecclesiastical career. He is later said to have lived as a cleric and may even have become bishop of Cyzicus.