However, there were no other historical records to support that a Roman emperor named Sponsia ever existed, according to a press release. And, at the time, “Sponsian” was not a name known to exist in ancient Rome.
Their manufacture and style, including enigmatic inscriptions, differed from the general style of genuine mid-3rd century Roman coins, according to the study. As a result, they were dismissed as poorly crafted forgeries.
The coin’s authenticity has been debated since it was unearthed in 1713. Credit: University of Glasgow
Now, researchers at University College London (UCL) and the University of Glasgow in the UK say they have discovered features indicative of authenticity.
They used powerful microscopes in visible and ultraviolet light, in addition to scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopy — studying how light at different wavelengths is absorbed or reflected — to examine the coins.
In total, they analyzed four coins from the hoard found in 1713, one of which depicts Sponsia. All four are on display in The Hunterian at the University of Glasgow.
A pattern of wear has been identified on the sponse coin, suggesting that it was in active circulation. Researchers also found earthenware, which means it was probably buried in soil for a long time before being dug up and exposed to air.
“Scientific analysis of these ultra-rare coins rescues the Sponsian emperor from obscurity,” lead study author Paul N. Pearson, research associate professor at UCL’s Earth Sciences department, said in the press release.
“Our evidence indicates that he ruled Roman Dacia, an isolated gold-mining outpost, at a time when the empire was beset by civil wars and the borderlands were overrun by marauding invaders,” he added.
Leader of Dacia
The province of Dacia, which was cut off from the rest of the Roman empire in about 260 AD, was a region valued for its gold mines and mineral resources, according to UCL.
Sponsiano never controlled an official mint or ruled Rome, the researchers said, but may have become a local commander-in-chief who took charge during a period of chaos and civil war to protect the population of Dacia.
The sponse coin series was used to pay high-ranking soldiers and officials, who kept them as a storehouse of wealth, the researchers suggested.
Powerful microscopes in visible and ultraviolet light, plus scanning electron microscopy and spectroscopy, were used to assess the authenticity of the coin. Credit: The Hunterian/University of Glasgow
From the findings, “it would seem that Sponsiano should be rehabilitated as a historical figure”, the study concluded.
The researchers added that while “nothing can be known about him for sure”, the coins analyzed “provide clues about his possible place in history”.
“Unscientific and baseless”
Not everyone is convinced, however.
Despite the study’s findings, some experts, including in the field of numismatics — the study or collection of currency — still believe the coin is fake.
“Like everyone in the numismatic world, I strongly believe that this coin is a modern forgery,” Jerome Mairat, curator of the Heberden Coin Room at the Ashmolean Museum in Oxford, England, told CNN.
“This whole theory — that the coin is genuine — is both unscientific and baseless,” he added.
The coin was used to pay high-ranking soldiers and officials in the cut-off Roman province of Dacia, the researchers suggest. Credit: University of Glasgow
Pearson, however, insisted that the researchers had reached a “clear conclusion” about the coins’ authenticity, telling CNN in an email: “To the grand history of Rome, Sponsiano is little more than a historical footnote — but a footnote that should nevertheless be reinstated !”
He said the researchers wanted to start a conversation with Roman historians and archaeologists to try to test their hypothesis about Sponsiano.
“To understand the dying days of Roman power in the Province of Dacia, and the history of Romania, he is perhaps more significant, but our results have just been published and the academic debate is just beginning.”
