Greek Festival Culture and ‘Political’ Games at Nikaia in Bithynia

Abstract

Abstract The political life of Nikaia under the Roman empire has been traditionally seen as a reflection of its long-standing rivalry with Nikomedia, the other major Bithynian centre and the provincial metropolis, as per Louis Robert’s memorable comparison between each city’s enumeration of honorific titles on inscriptions and coins. However, a more in-depth analysis of the coinages of Nikaia and Nikomedia at the pinnacle of their reciprocal opposition—between the mid-second century ad and the Severan age, shows that they were adopting different political strategies. The message conveyed through Nikaian coinage, which was much larger and more varied than that of its rival, laid greater emphasis on the glorification of the imperial family, probably to compensate for being disallowed to host a neokoros temple after the city had sided with Pescennius Niger in the conflict against Septimius Severus. This contribution outlines the political message delivered by the Nikaian coinage from the reign of Commodus to that of Gallienus, with a special focus on the use of festivals honouring the imperial family to demonstrate loyalty and enhance the community’s provincial rank. It will look particularly at the special relation of Nikaia with the Severan family and the visual language adopted on its coinage to link the civic festivals and games to the worship of the Severan emperors.