Gold Solidus of Constans II (641–68)

Early Byzantine

On view at The Met Fifth Avenue in Gallery 301

A cross on steps is thought to represent the great cross that the emperor Theodosius II (r. 408–50) erected on Golgotha, the site of Christ's crucifixion.

Coins connected an emperor to his subjects. He paid the army in coins, received taxes in coins, and was responsible for maintaining their weight and purity. These coins of early Byzantine emperors conveyed imperial ideals through inscriptions and images.

Gold Solidus of Constans II (641–68), Gold, Early Byzantine

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Gold Solidus of Constans II (641–68), Gold, Early Byzantine
Gold Solidus of Constans II (641–68), Gold, Early Byzantine

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