Christianity and the Roman Coinage
Over the fourth centuryad, there are only intermittent indications of the increas-
ing Christianization of the Roman order on the empire’s coinage, now unified after
the demise of the provincial coinages and the establishment in the late third century
of a network of imperial mints all producing coins with standard types. The designs
remained substantially public or imperial, in the sense that they proclaim the
empire’s perpetual victory over its enemies and its internal coherence, rather than
drawing explicitly on the new religion to which the emperors now subscribed. In
the fourth century, the chi-rhosymbol, representing the Greek monogram of Christ,
appears as a subsidiary motif on a number of different coin issues – either as a mint
mark in the field, or as an element in the design of the imperial banner, the labarum,
which various emperors are shown brandishing in triumphant mode. An unusually
clear example of the style is the remarkable design used on coins minted inad 327
at Constantinople to celebrate its foundation, showing a labarumadorned with three
pellets to represent medallions of Constantine and two of his sons, Constantius II
and Constantine II. The whole is surmounted by the monogram of Christ and the
shaft is plunged into a writhing snake, usually interpreted as referring to Licinius,
Constantine’s vanquished rival (fig. 11.33). Eusebius (Life of Constantine 3.3)
describes a similar scene painted on a tablet mounted on the portico of Constan-
tine’s palace, presumably in Constantinople. Much of the symbolism of the coin is
clearly Christian. Even so, as the legend SPES PVBLIC (“the people’s hope”), makes
clear, this is a type in celebration of the triumph of the Roman people marching
under a Christian flag and led into battle by a Christian emperor, rather than of the
triumph of the religion itself, much less that of the church. This is equally true
of the remarkable silver medallions of aboutad 315 which show the emperor in a
helmet decorated with the Christogram (P. Bruun 1997).
No doubt many Christians read all this Christian imagery in a straightforwardly
partisan manner. Eusebius, for instance, describes the coins of Constantine showing
his head looking upward as depicting him in the act of prayer, ignoring the long,
pre-Christian tradition of royal busts with eyes raised heavenward in imitation
of Alexander the Great (Life of Constantine4.15; fig. 11.34). Nevertheless, com-
promises continued to be struck between the new religion and Roman religious
traditions. So, on coins struck posthumously for Constantine, he is shown in
the traditional Roman manner ascending into heaven on a chariot as a divinized
emperor, with the hand of God reaching down to greet him, and is titled Divus
Religion and Roman Coins 159Figure 11.33 Base-metal coin of Constantine I, ad327, celebrating the foundation of
Constantinople. 15 mm.