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Up for auction is a Roman Follis Bronze coin issued by Constantine I from 307-318 AD
ID# 917o
MINT: RO (Rome)
OBVERSE; IMP CONSTANTINVS PF AVG
- Laureate and cuirassed bust right.
REVERSE; SOLI INVICTO COMITI
- Sol standing left, raising hand and holding globe.
REFERENCE: RIC VII Rome 33
Constantine I
307 - 337
One of the great Roman emperors, Constantine rose to power when his father Constantius Chlorus died in the year 306 while campaigning against Scottish tribes. He later went on to defeat the rival emperor Maxentius in the decisive battle of Milvian Bridge in 312. He is credited for several great landmarks in history and is probably best memorialized by the city that bore his name for hundreds of years: Constantinople. Although now renamed Istanbul, this city was to be the seat of power for all Byzantine emperors for the next 1100 years. Constantine is also remembered as the first Roman emperor who embraced Christianity and instituted the buildings and papal dynasty that eventually grew into what is today the Vatican and the Pope.
The latter part of his life saw his commitment to the church rise in step with the increasing repression against old-school paganism. He left behind several sons who would, after his death, turn on each other and generally undo much of the stability that Constantine had fought so hard to bring about.