Pentanummium of Justin I, Constantinople 518 - 527

Curator: Here we have a Pentanummium of Justin I, struck in Constantinople. Editor: It looks like a little portal to another time, doesn’t it? Tarnished and worn, yet carrying the weight of history on its tiny surface. Curator: Indeed. The formal composition—the effigy of Justin I on one side, the stylized symbol on the other—speaks to the visual language of power in Byzantium. Consider the semiotic function of these elements. Editor: I’m struck by the texture. Imagine the hands it passed through, the transactions it facilitated. It's more than just currency; it's a tactile link to lives lived centuries ago. Curator: The materiality is crucial, reflecting the economic and political realities of the time. The coin’s very existence embodies the structural frameworks of the empire. Editor: I get lost thinking about the stories it could tell, the whispers of the market, the clang of the money purse. It's really a tangible whisper from the past.