Affordable Ancients: Campgate Coins

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Ancient coin collecting is often seen as intimidating, defined by complex history, unfamiliar terminology, and seemingly prohibitive costs. In our Affordable Ancients series, Tyler Rossi of Shanna Schmidt Numismatics Inc. dispels these myths, proving that collecting authentic ancient coins can be both approachable and affordable. Each installment will provide practical insights, historical context, and expert guidance to help collectors confidently navigate the ancient coin market.

So far, the “Affordable Ancients” series has carried us across the ancient Mediterranean, from Iberian bronzes to Rome’s hardworking antoninianus coins. For this installment, we move into the turbulent 4th century A.D. and one of the most recognizable types in all of Roman numismatics: campgate coins. Whenever a new collector asks me where to start with Roman coinage, this is one of the first series I point them toward. Struck in enormous numbers under Constantine the Great and his rivals, campgates pair a propagandized imperial portrait with a bold architectural reverse. They are historically rich, endlessly variable from mint to mint, and, best of all, almost absurdly cheap.

What Are Campgate Coins?

Campgate coins belongs to the small bronze denominations of the early 4th century, usually described as a follis. This classic series was struck across the empire roughly between A.D. 324 and 330, though the broader “gate” motif appears on Roman bronze from Diocletian all the way down to Valentinian III a century later.

Campgate coins have imagery that is consistent and easy to learn, which is part of what makes the type so friendly to newcomers. The obverse carries the laureate or diademed bust of the emperor ringed by his titles. The reverse shows a turreted gateway, typically with two flanking towers, and a single star above or between them. The accompanying legend is almost always PROVIDENTIAE AVGG (“the foresight of the Augusti”) or PROVIDENTIAE CAESS (“the foresight of the Casesars”) for issues struck in the names of the junior Caesars.

The type was struck not only for Constantine but for his sons Crispus, Constantine II, Constantius II, and Constans, as well as for his rivals Licinius I and Licinius II. 

Coins of Conflict

The campgate’s message was no accident. These coins come straight out of the years of tension and open war between Constantine in the West and Licinius in the East, and their imagery speaks directly to that anxious moment. The legend PROVIDENTIAE AVGG frames the gateway as a promise that the emperor’s vigilance keeps the empire secure. For Romans living through near-constant civil war, when stability was scarce and violence widespread, that reassurance carried real weight.

The structure itself has long invited debate. Numismatists historically read it as a military camp gate, evidence of imperial attention to the frontier defenses. More recent scholarship has pushed back convincingly, arguing that the image is really a city gate and that the star above is the sidus salutare (or star of salvation) heralding the emperor’s protective arrival through the open gates. Under this reading the design actually celebrates the salus, the health and safety of the empire as delivered by its ruler. Either way, it is worth remembering that a coin you can buy for pocket change once carried a serious piece of imperial messaging.

The staggering quantities needed to fund a war economy are exactly why campgates survive in such numbers today, and why they remain so affordable more than 16 centuries later. Politics shaped that supply too. During the brief truces between the two camps, each emperor occasionally struck coins in the other’s name, and those crossover issues are where the real rarities of the series hide.

Collecting Campgates

Half the fun of campgates is attribution, and for that, the exergue, located at the bottom half of the reverse, is your best friend. The mintmark tells you where a coin was struck and in which workshop. SMNA, for example, stands for Sacra Moneta of Nicomedia, first officina, which translates to “Holy Mint of Nicomedia, first workshop.” The type poured out of mints across the empire, including Trier, Lyon, Arles, Ticinum, Rome, Siscia, Thessalonica, Heraclea, Nicomedia, Cyzicus, Antioch, and Alexandria.

Beyond the mintmark, you should focus on the details. Some specialists distinguish issues by the number of stone courses in the wall, the turrets, or the central star! Compare the coin you have against the Late Roman Bronze Coinage (LRBC) handbook (RIC VII), and you can pin most pieces down with confidence. As always, prioritize a clear portrait and legible legend over a flashy but harshly cleaned surface. Identifiable examples start around $5, and even well-centered pieces with good detail rarely strain a modest budget. Buy one, and I suspect you’ll be hunting a second mint before long.

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