The question of whether the mysterious Roman leader, Sponsian, is a real person or a fictional character stamped on some counterfeit coins has been around for some time. An extremely rare pile of gold coins now shows that this long-time monarch was in fact a real historical figure and not a fake as some suspect.
Researchers recently examined a batch of coins allegedly discovered in Transylvania in 1713. These coins bore the side profile of a Roman leader with the name “Sponsian”.
It is typical for Roman mints to produce coins stamped with the emperor or prominent local leaders of the time. Unusually, however, there are no written records of anyone with the name of Sponsor. Also, in terms of style, the Transylvanian style was not very typical for ancient Roman coins, leading some previous researchers to assume they were counterfeit.
Scientists from University College London (UCL) and the University of Glasgow confirm the coins in a new study, saying that Sponsian is a real regional emperor that we didn’t know until now.
They achieved this validation using a range of intriguing imaging techniques, including visible light microscopy, ultraviolet imaging, scanning electron microscopy, and reflection-mode Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy.
First, these analyzes showed that the coins have many deep micro-wear patterns that suggest they have been in circulation for centuries. Small soil deposits on the coins also indicated that they had been buried for a considerable time before being excavated.
This led them to conclude that the coins were genuine and probably dated to the period of the Roman Empire. Researchers think that Sponsian was a powerful military commander in Dacia, the ancient Roman Province in modern-day Romania, during a period of military conflict around 260 AD.
However, many uncertainties remain regarding this individual. For example, the lack of written records of this apparently important ruler and similarly the fact that no more coins with his name have been discovered raise important questions.
The team hopes this latest evidence will encourage historians and archaeologists to delve deeper into the identity of this mysterious figure and shed light on potentially unexplored Roman history.
Paul N. Pearson, lead author of the paper at UCL’s Earth Sciences Department, said in a statement: “Scientific analysis of these extremely rare coins has brought the region’s emperor, the Spongean, out of obscurity. Our evidence is that it was an isolated city at a time when the empire was beset by civil wars and the frontier areas were overrun by marauding invaders. “It shows that he is directing Roman Dacia, a gold mining outpost,” he said.
Jesper Ericsson, curator of The Hunterian Numismatics, said: “We hope this will not only stimulate further discussion of Sponsian as a historical figure, but also the study of coins related to him held in other museums in Europe.”
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