Arcadius, Eastern Roman Empire (AD 383-408). AV solidus

Description

Arcadius, Eastern Roman Empire (AD 383-408). AV solidus (21mm, 4.48 gm, 5h). NGC Choice AU 5/5 – 4/5, edge mark. Constantinople, 6th officina, AD 378-383. D N ARCADI-VS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust of Arcadius right, seen from front / CONCORDI-A AVGGG S, Constantinopolis seated facing on throne ornamented with lion heads, helmeted head right, right foot on prow, grounded scepter in right hand, globe in outstretched left hand; CONOB in exergue. RIC IX 46f.

Arcadius, eldest son of Theodosius I, was proclaimed co-emperor with his father at the age of 6 and took over sole control of the East upon his father’s death when he was 18 as the first Eastern Roman Emperor after the final division of Rome. Although he ruled for over 25 years, he seems to have lacked the natural leadership abilities to hold his own as Augustus. Arcadius’s state affairs were mostly handled by the court eunuch, Eutropius, and his wife, Aelia Eudoxia. He also struggled against Alaric’s army of Visigoths in the Balkans, his own praetorian prefect Flavius Rufinus, and his brother’s general Stilicho. His reign was unremarkable and came with both internal and external challenges. Arcadius was deeply influenced by Christian politics and theological disputes of the time. He died in AD 408, leaving the throne to his young son, Theodosius II.