Coin (AE2) of Arcadius, Antioch 378 - 383

Curator: This is an AE2 coin of Arcadius, produced in Antioch. You can see the details of the emperor's bust rendered in bronze. It's a fascinating object. Editor: It looks well-worn, almost like a blurry memory. I wonder what hands this passed through, what exchanges it facilitated? Curator: The coin was likely mass-produced, a tool of economic control and imperial propaganda. Its material, bronze, speaks to accessibility, but also to the emperor's reach. Editor: Exactly. Its degradation is equally important. Each scratch represents a negotiation of power. Think of the social and political landscape it represents. Curator: It's incredible to think how this small object, crafted with deliberate intent, circulated within such a complex economic structure. Editor: And how it now allows us to consider larger implications of trade, influence, and the lived realities of people from that era. Curator: Indeed, it's a tangible artifact that really brings those issues of production and value to light. Editor: Absolutely, it opens up discussions about economic empowerment, historical narrative, and labor.