Laodikeia (AD 244-247) AE 32 - Philip II

Philip II, as Caesar, 244-247 AD. AE32 (20.07g, 6h). Homonoia with Smyrna in Ionia. M IOYΛ • ΦIΛIΠΠOC • KAICAP, draped and cuirassed bust right / ΛAOΔIKЄΩ N Z MYPNAIΩN, Zeus Laodikenos standing right, holding scepter and eagle, facing Nemesis of Smyrna standing left, holding dress; wheel at feet to left; OMONOIA in exergue. EF, wonderful earthen green patina. Rare.

The homonoia between two cities of the Greek world was the proclamation of an "agreement" or commonality of interests, almost like the "sister-city" arrangements between modern cities. While the Leagues of Greek cities were primarily military alliances, a homonoia was a union based on political, economic and religious connections. The cities of Asia Minor preserved this tradition under the Romans, with an extensive interlinked system of alliances. The earliest coins marking these agreements appear under Domitian, but the majority come later, dating from the Severan period through the end of provincial coinage in the late 3rd century AD.