2021-05-29 Sat

The Roman Empire began on January 16, 27 BCE when the Roman Senate conferred the titles Augustus and Princeps on Octavian; it ended on May 29, 1453 CE when the imperial capital in Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. The last emperor of the Romans, Constantine XI Palaiologos (reigned 1449-1453), died fighting the Turks after they breached the city walls.

Constantine's death marked the end of the Byzantine Empire, which traced its origin to Constantine the Great's foundation of Constantinople as the Roman Empire's new capital in 330. Given that the Byzantine Empire was the Roman Empire's medieval continuation, with its citizens continually referring to themselves as Romans, Constantine XI's death and Constantinople's fall also marked the definitive end of the Roman Empire, founded by Augustus almost 1,500 years earlier.

1/8 stavrato (minted 1448–1453) is one of the last coins minted by the Byzantine Empire. The coin features a bust of Constantine XI (left) and Christ Pantocrator (right).

Image Source: Wikipedia.org