EN
At the turn of the 5th and 6th centuries, the civilitas forming in Italy was ruled by one of the powerful figures of Late Antiquity (or the Early Middle Ages): Theoderic the Great, King of the Ostrogoths, later also King of Italy. Raised in Constantinople,2 he was aware of the power conveyed by imagery and of the significant role of monetary policy. The present article is focused on the preserved medallion of Theoderic and aims to discuss the question of how the image of this ruler affected his position and whether it could have been a political propaganda tool.