In ancient coin collecting, there are few types with better value than 4th century AD Roman gold solidi. They boast a high degree of sophistication and grace without the huge price tag of earlier aurei. I’m most drawn to the gold pieces of Constantius II (r. 337-361) and of Theodosius I. Their coins are the last to bear that classical Roman “feel” – a certain style and elegance that was unfortunately lost with the standardization and simplification of portraiture in the following 5th century. The coin above, serving as the Miller Ancients logo, is probably my favorite coin in my collection.
 
Theodosius was a Spaniard suddenly promoted to the position of emperor after Valens’ disastrous defeat and death on the battlefield against the Goths at Adrianople. His father was known as Count Theodosius, whose claim to fame was defeating the Great Conspiracy, a coordinated invasion of Roman Britain by Scottish tribes to the north. The empire was divided at the time; Valens was ruling the East, while his nephew Gratian, who appointed Theodosius, ruled in the West. The Roman world was also divided in its faith. Ascendant Christianity, through the persistent efforts of Constantine and his family, was now the religion of the majority of the empire’s citizens. Christianity had survived the brief two-year attempt of Julian the Apostate to restore paganism, and its momentum seemed unstoppable. It is likely that by the start of Theodosius’ reign in 379, the empire was about 75% Christian and 25% traditional pagan. But there were also bitter divisions within the 75% Christian population – doctrinal differences about the subordination (or lack thereof) of Jesus Christ to God the Father.

A particularly fine style Theodosius solidus, also of Constantinople (Leu Numismatik Web Auction 30).
 
Theodosius was a Nicene and strongly rejected the subordination theory (known as Arianism) that stated Jesus, as the son, was inferior to the Father. In 380 AD, he issued the Edict of Thessalonica, which made Nicene Christianity the official state religion of the Roman Empire, a decisive shift away from the middle-ground toleration of Constantine. There were large persecutions of pagans for the first time, most notably in Egypt, where the Serapeum temple was burned in anti-pagan riots. It was around the time of Theodosius that hieroglyphs ceased to be used after 3,500 years and were quietly forgotten. The monuments of Egypt were to lay undecipherable until the French army under Napoleon recovered the Rosetta Stone, inspiring Jean-Francois Champollion to crack history’s most famous code.
 
Theodosius was also the last emperor to rule both east and west, briefly reuniting the empire before his death in 395. He defeated the Western usurper Eugenius in the Balkans late in 394, a battle which seemed to confirm the destiny of Christianity to be the Roman religion. Theodosius’ Eastern troops were losing the fight, with the rain in their face, when all of a sudden the wind shifted and the rain picked up, blinding Eugenius’ western troops. While he himself was a Christian, Eugenius had allowed wealthy pagan senators in Rome to restore the worship of the old gods and had reinstated some of the sacrifices. His defeat at the Frigidus was seen as another divine sign.

When Theodosius died in Milan early in 395, he once again divided the empire between his sons. Rome was never again united; while the East prospered for centuries, the West fell within a century under the pressure of Germanic migrations.