Justinian I, 527-565. Solidus (Gold, 22 mm, 4.39 g, 6 h), Rome, 547-549. D N IVSTINIANVS P P AVG Helmeted and cuirassed bust of Justinian I facing, holding globus cruciger in his right hand and with a shield decorated with horseman attacking a fallen foe over his left shoulder. Rev. VICTORIA AVGG•G Θ / CONOB Angel standing facing, holding long linear staff surmounted by staurogram in his right hand and globus cruciger in his left; in field to right, star. DOC 320 var. (unlisted officina). MIB 34. SB 291. Rare and in exceptional condition for the issue. A few very minor marks, otherwise, extremely fine.

The Gothic War of 535-554 saw two decades of ferocious fighting between Byzantine and Ostrogothic forces over the control of the Italian peninsula. DOC dates our coin to 547-549, a short period during which Belisarius controlled the Eternal City before it fell again to the Goths after a hard-fought siege that led to the destruction of the last remaining aqueducts. While Narses regained control over Rome in 552, the depopulated city, much like the rest of Italy, lay in ruins and never fully recovered, thus marking the end of antiquity in the West