Theodosius II, Eastern Roman Empire (AD 402-450). AV solidus (20mm, 4.48 gm, 7h). NGC Choice MS 5/5 - 4/5, adjusted flan. Constantinople, 8th officina, AD 430-440. D N THEODO-SIVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, helmeted, cuirassed bust of Theodosius II facing, head slightly right, spear in right hand over shoulder, shield decorated with horseman motif in left / VOT XXX-MVLT XXXX H, Constantinopolis enthroned left, left foot on prow, globus cruciger in right hand, scepter in left, shield beside; star in right field, CONOB in exergue. RIC X 257. A superb coin with a perfectly centered strike from fresh dies on a bright, reflective flan. Struck during a period when Byzantium was paying enormous tribute to the Huns, this coin very well could have been part of the 700 pounds of gold (50,400 solidi) that Constantinople sent to the Huns every year after AD 433. Following a successful Hunnic invasion of the Balkans in AD 447, the tribute was tripled to an unthinkable sum of 151,200 solidi per year. These truly exorbitant tribute payments lasted only three years, however, as Marcian simply refused to pay them on his ascension to the throne in AD 450. HID09801242017 © 2022 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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