The First Numismatic Evidence from the Inner Castle Baptistery of Paphlagonian Hadrianopolis

Abstract

The subject of this article is the sixteen coins found in the Inner Castle Baptistery, where excavations began in 2022. The archaeological datas from these excavations revealed that the Inner Castle Baptistery was built in the 5th century CE. It remained in use with its original function until the end of the 7th century CE, undergoing various repairs and additions. The last phase of the building consists of the remains of a wall built with earthen mortar. Given the long-term use of the Inner Castle Baptistery, the coins discovered during the excavations are dated from the period of Licinius I (314 CE) to that of Michael VII Ducas (1071—1078 CE). The numismatic datas from the Inner Castle Baptistery are significant as they corroborate the archaeological findings related to the building’s construction, use, and renovation periods. These findings are also essential to understand the Middle-Late Byzantine Period of the city. Until the 2022 excavations, most of the coins discovered in the Hadrianopolis excavations were from the Late Roman and Early Byzantine periods, with only a few exceptions. The dominance of coins from these periods, coupled with the lack of post-8th century CE data, except for a few surface finds not directly associated with the buildings, suggested that the city might have been abandoned during this century. However, the sixteen coins from the Inner Castle Baptistery, which is the focus of this study, are crucial in providing archaeological evidence that Hadrianopolis continued to be inhabited during the Middle-Late Byzantine Period, at least until the end of the 11th century CE. © 2024, Cimmeria Publishing. All rights reserved.