Antoninianus of Probus 277 - 282

Curator: This is an Antoninianus of Probus, a Roman coin weighing just under 4 grams and currently held at the Harvard Art Museums. Editor: The condition suggests a tumultuous journey through time. Despite the wear, there's something hauntingly powerful about such a small object. Curator: Indeed. The image of Probus on one side and what appears to be a temple on the other carry immense symbolic weight. Coins like these were not just currency, they were propaganda. Editor: Absolutely. They speak to the emperor's self-fashioning, and the promise of stability—a message clearly designed to legitimize power in a period of crisis. Look at how the temple acts as a symbol of order and prosperity. Curator: It's a reminder that even in decay, symbols retain their potency, their ability to connect us to the past. Editor: A tangible link to complex histories of power and resilience. It makes me wonder about the hands it passed through.