City Commemorative Issue, Antioch 335 - 337

Curator: There's something haunting about this coin, isn't there? Like holding a tiny piece of lost history. Editor: Indeed. This is a City Commemorative Issue from Antioch, attributed to Constantine I. It is currently held in the collections of the Harvard Art Museums. Curator: Antioch...so many layers of power and cultural exchange. I imagine the marketplace, the whispers, the clash of languages... Editor: This coin, though small at 2.03 grams, speaks volumes about Constantine's strategic consolidation of power and the symbolic importance of cities within the Roman Empire's ideological framework. Curator: Makes you wonder about the hand that last held it, doesn't it? The dreams they had, the world they inhabited... it all ended up as dust, just like this coin will someday return to dust. Editor: The coin invites us to reflect on how we memorialize power and the role of urban centers in the construction of collective identity. A tangible link to narratives of identity, power, and the cyclical nature of civilizations. Curator: It's all so transient, so beautiful, so sad. Editor: Precisely, a poignant reminder of history's enduring echoes.