Pontus, Zela
Septimius Severus (193-211 CE)
Dated Year 143 – 206/7 CE
AE 29.02mm 14.45g
Obverse: AV KAI Λ CEΠ-TI CEOVHPOC AVΓ, laureate head right
Reverse: ZHΛIT-ΩN TO-V PON / ET PMΓ, hexastyle temple with broken pediment
RPC V.3 78675 – 2 specimens
Zela is today Zile, Turkey, and evidence points to inhabitants at least from Assyrian times. Its temple was crucial during the Achaemenid period, and for much of its history it was a virtual “temple state”. That temple is depicted on this coin.
The city grew in Roman influence, but was attacked twice by Mithridates VI of Pontos, and in the first attack all Romans were killed. After Pompey defeated Mithridates, he turned Zela into a true city, and it grew further from there.
Zela was again at the forefront in 47 BCE, when Julius Caesar quickly defeated Pharnakes II of Pontus. The famous phrase “Veni Vidi Vici” was minted from this battle, and the words were later engraved in a display at Zela. It remained a prosperous Roman city until taken by Shapur I. Afterwards, it passed between the Byzantines and Sassanids multiple times.
Today, many ruins remain, though the temple has never been uncovered.
Mithridates VI of Pontos takes Zela and kills all the Roman inhabitants
Mithridates VI attacks Zela again
Julius Caesar defeats Pharnakes II of Pontus at the Battle of Zela, coining the phrase “Veni Vidi Vici”