The Numismatic Iconography of the Roman Colonies in Greece

“One of the first scholars to grasp the importance of the coinage of the Greek cities during the Roman period was the distinguished nineteenth-century numismatist F.W. Imhoof-Blumer. The result of his insight was the publication, in collaboration with his eminent British colleague, Percy Gardner, of an extremely valuable handbook, the Numismatic commentary on Pausanias. This book lucidly demonstrates that the subjection of the Greek cities to Rome did not prevent Greek engravers from depicting on the bronze coinage that was widely used in daily life, a whole range of ancient Greek sculptures, buildings, gods, heroes and mythological scenes, remnants of a glorious past. Indeed these coins have provided valuable evidence to students of ancient sculpture, architecture and mythology.
The extent to which the ancient civilisation of the Greeks survived the Roman conquest varied widely from one place to another, according to their degree of dependence on the central authority – on Rome, in other words. The iconography of the coins was influenced, up to a point, by political developments. But in general the Romans did not intervene excessively in the traditions of the conquered Greek cities, including their coinage.
Harikleia Papageorgiadou’s book, The numismatic iconography of the Roman colonies in Greece, successfully and penetratingly fills a gap that existed in both the Greek and the international bibliography. During recent decades a number of important studies have been devoted to the coinage of the Greek cities after the Roman conquest. What was lacking was an investigation specifically of the numismatic iconography of the Roman colonies that were founded in Greece, comparable to that devoted to the cities of Asia Minor by Professor Peter Franke, Kleinasien zur Romerzeit. Griechisches Leben im Spiegel der Munzen.
The author has produced a well-rounded treatment of her subject, and a lucid presentation of the political, economic, social and in general the historical characteristics of the period. She knows well the epoch she has chosen, and she provides us also with a rich bibliography. She offers a convincing interpretation of the colonial coinages in the light both of the events of the period and of iconographical considerations. She also analyses the legends that accompany each image, in order to offer as complete an interpretation of it as possible…”

(from the preface)