Évora is city in Portugal with a rich history dating back several millennia. It was known as Ebora by the Celtici, a tribal confederacy, south of the Lusitanians, who made the town their regional capital.
The Romans conquered the town in 57 BC and expanded it into a walled town. Vestiges from this period (city walls and ruins of Roman baths) still remain. Julius Caesar called it Liberalitas Julia (Julian generosity). The city grew in importance because it lay at the junction of several important routes. During his travels through Gaul and Lusitania, Pliny the Elder also visited this town and mentioned it in his book Naturalis Historia as Ebora Cerealis, because of its many surrounding wheat fields.
During the barbarian invasions, Évora came under the rule of the Visigothic king Leovigild in 584. In 715, the city was conquered by the Moors who called it Yaburah. During the Moorish rule (715–1165), the town slowly began to prosper again and developed into an agricultural center with a fortress and a mosque. Évora was wrested from the Moors through a surprise attack by Gerald the Fearless (Geraldo Sem Pavor) in September 1165. The town came under the rule of the Portuguese king Afonso I in 1166. It then flourished as one of the most dynamic cities in the Kingdom of Portugal during the Middle Ages, especially in the 15th century.
The Romans conquered the town in 57 BC and expanded it into a walled town. Vestiges from this period (city walls and ruins of Roman baths) still remain. Julius Caesar called it Liberalitas Julia (Julian generosity). The city grew in importance because it lay at the junction of several important routes. During his travels through Gaul and Lusitania, Pliny the Elder also visited this town and mentioned it in his book Naturalis Historia as Ebora Cerealis, because of its many surrounding wheat fields.
During the barbarian invasions, Évora came under the rule of the Visigothic king Leovigild in 584. In 715, the city was conquered by the Moors who called it Yaburah. During the Moorish rule (715–1165), the town slowly began to prosper again and developed into an agricultural center with a fortress and a mosque. Évora was wrested from the Moors through a surprise attack by Gerald the Fearless (Geraldo Sem Pavor) in September 1165. The town came under the rule of the Portuguese king Afonso I in 1166. It then flourished as one of the most dynamic cities in the Kingdom of Portugal during the Middle Ages, especially in the 15th century.
Modern location: Évora, Portugal
(1)
Augustus
Obverse: PERMISSV CAESARIS AVGVSTI P M; Bare head of Augustus facing left
Reverse: LIBERALITATIS IVL EBOR; Patera, aspergillum, jug, simpulum, and knife
Diameter:
33 mm
Die Orientation: 6 H
Weight: 21.66 g
Die Orientation: 6 H
Weight: 21.66 g
RPC believes these coins were issued to commemorate Augustus's election to the office of Pontifex Maximus and dates them to after 12 BC as Augustus attained the office in that year.
RPC I 50