The empire of Palmyra, as Eckhel justly remarks in opposition to Gibbon, did not reach beyond Egypt and the countries of the Levant: Egypt perhaps it only comprised in the last years, under Claudius Gothicus. From coins especially, one may learn much, although they are often enigmatical, that is to say, they give us enigmas to solve which but for them would have never come to us at all. In Illyricum, Africa, Egypt, even in peaceful Achaia, pretenders now arose, whose rule indeed lasted but a short time, yet they most sadly distracted the empire. The whole of the state, in fact, now consisted of three distinct masses. In the first place, there was the empire of Rome; secondly, there was the West or Gallic empire; and thirdly, that of the East. In Gaul, even very far back indeed, as early as the days of Augustus and Tiberius, a marked spirit of independence might have been observed, whereas Spain was much more sincerely united to Rome: in the East, it was quite the reverse, just as in Gaul. Treves was even at that time the seat of government, as perhaps it was also under Postumus and Victorinus, although they often lived at Cologne: Neuwied is called on the inscriptions _Victoriensis_, which may have some connexion with Victorinus and his mother Victoria. The _Porta Nigra_ at Treves belongs to this time. It is a Roman gate, on each side of which there are basilicas: the whole building is of no older date. The capital of such an empire might well have had large structures. Taste had already fallen to a very low ebb. CLAUDIUS GOTHICUS. AURELIAN. TACITUS. PROBUS. CARUS. A northern pretender, Aureolus, having marched from Rhætia against Milan, Gallienus fell during the siege of this town, most likely by the hands of his own men. He was a curse to the Roman empire, and his death was its deliverance. After him came a great man, M. Aurelius Claudius, who received the well-earned name of Gothicus. This emperor had to face a new invasion of the Goths, who burst in by the Propontis, and once more destroyed Cyzicus. These now made their appearance in Macedon, besieged even Thessalonica, and from thence marched into the interior of the country. There they met with Claudius, and they wished to retreat back again to the Danube; but Claudius defeated them near Nissa, on the borders of Bulgaria and Servia, in a great battle in which they were all but annihilated. New hordes, however, were always pouring in, the East and West Goths being now joined by the Vandals; and Claudius, while going on with the war against them, died at Sirmium in the middle of his career, either of the plague or of an epidemic caused by the war. The seat of the disease seems to have been in Mœsia, where it did great havoc, both among the Romans and among the Goths. He was succeeded by Aurelian.