Helena. Augusta, AD 324-328/30. Æ Follis (19mm, 2.90 g, 12h). Thessalonica mint. Struck circa AD 318-319. Draped bust right / Star of eight rays within laurel wreath; TSA. RIC VII 48 corr. (mintmark as •TS•A•); LRBC 821. Dark green surfaces with traces of red, light roughness. Good VF.
A remarkable series of bronzes was struck circa AD 318 at the Thessalonica mint on which both Helena and her sister-in-law, Fausta, are accorded the lesser title of Nobilissima Femina (N F). Both ladies had borne this rank for a considerable time: Helena since Constantine's elevation to imperial status in AD 306, Fausta since her marriage to Constantine in March of the following year. The significance of this anepigraphic reverse remains uncertain, though it presumably contains some reference to divine providence and destiny.