| Image search results - "234," |
29 Elagabalus, 16 May 218 - 11 March 222 A.D.Silver denarius, BMCRE V 234, RIC IV 161, RSC III 300a, EF, 2.693g, 19.8mm, 180o, Rome mint, 220 - 222 A.D.; obverse IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right, from behind; reverse VICTORIA AVG, Victory flying left holding diadem in both hands, at each side a small shield, star right
Purchased from FORVMSosius
|
|
000981 Bull Leaping Right, Horse and Rider Galloping RightThessaly Greece, the City of Larissa
Obv: ΛΑΡΙΣΑΙON above, bull leaping r., horizontal groundline. All within a border of dots.
Rev: Thessalian horseman (Thessalos?) wearing a tunic, petasos, and a chlamys fluttering to the l., holding a goad in his r. hand on a horse galloping r.
Denomination: silver drachm; Mint: Larissa; Date: c. 370 - 356 BC; Weight: 6.05g; Diameter: 20mm: Die axis: 0º; References, for example: BMC Thessaly p. 29 no. 54, pl. V, 13 var. Ω instead of O in legend; Pozzi 1229; Weber 2856, p. 110 var. Ω instead of O in legend; Hermann Group VI, pl. IV, 17 and 18 var. Ω instead of O in legend; McClean 4610, pl. on p. 173, 6; Traité IV 698, pl. CCXCVIII, 9; SNG Lockett 1566, var. Ω instead of O in legend; SNG Cop 118; SNG Ashmolean 3871; Lorber 2008, pl. 46, 101; BCD Thessaly I 1136; BCD Thessaly II 186 var. Ω instead of O in legend; HGC 4, 449.
Provenance: Ex. CNG Feature Auction 121 October 6, 2022, Lot 234, from the Weise Collection; Ex. Daniel Koppersmith Collection CNG Triton XVII January 7, 2014, Lot 195; Ex. BCD Collection Classical Numismatic Group Auction 90 May 23, 2012, Lot 94; Ex. Leu 30 April 28, 1982, Lot 100.
Photo Credits: Classical Numismatic Group, LLC.
CLICK FOR SOURCES
Tracy Aiello
|
|
014 Nero (54-68 A.D.), RIC I 0234, Rome, AE-Semis, CER QVINQ ROM CO,014 Nero (54-68 A.D.), RIC I 0234, Rome, AE-Semis, CER QVINQ ROM CO,
avers:- NERO-CAESAR-AVG-IMP, Laureate head right.
revers:- CER-QVINQ-ROM-CO, SC in ex, mark of value S on table, urn and a wreath set on a table, two griffins on front panel, round shield resting against leg.
exergo: -/-//S-C, diameter: 18mm, weight: 4,35g, axis: h,
mint: Rome, date: 64 A.D., ref: RIC-234, C-47,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
024a Domitian (69-81 A.D. Caesar, 81-96 A.D. Augustus), RIC 0957, RIC II(1962) 0242(Vespasian), AR-Denarius, Rome, COS V, Horseman, Scarce!, #1024a Domitian (69-81 A.D. Caesar, 81-96 A.D. Augustus), RIC 0957, RIC II(1962) 0242(Vespasian), AR-Denarius, Rome, COS V, Horseman, Scarce!, #1
avers:- CAESAR-AVG-F-DOMITIANVS, Laurate head right.
revers:- COS V, Horseman helmeted right hand raised.
exerg: -/-//--, diameter: 17mm, weight: 3,18g, axes: 5h,
mint: Rome, date: 78-79 A.D., ref: RIC 0957, RIC II(1962) 0242(Vespasian) p-43, RSC 49, BMC 234,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
037b Marcus Aurelius (139-161 A.D. as Caesar, 161-180 A.D. as Augustus), RIC III 0289, Rome, AR-Denarius, IMP VI COS III, German seated right at foot of trophy,037b Marcus Aurelius (139-161 A.D. as Caesar, 161-180 A.D. as Augustus), RIC III 0289, Rome, AR-Denarius, IMP VI COS III, German seated right at foot of trophy,
avers:- M-ANTONINVS-AVG-TR-P-XXVIII, Laurate head right.
revers:- IMP-VI-COS-III, German seated right at foot of trophy, surrounded by various weapons.
exerg: -/-//--, diameter: 18,0mm, weight: 2,84g, axis: 0h,
mint: Rome, date:173-174 A.D., ref: RIC-III-289, p-234, C-298,
Q-001
quadrans
|
|
040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.c., P-219-03, Madonna and child, #01040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.c., P-219-03, Madonna and child, #01
avers: ✠mOnЄTA•mAThIЄ•R•hVnGARI, Hungarian shield, four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, Bohemian lion). Inside of the central shield, the raven standing and turning left. The ring in its beak, (Legend variation!).
reverse: •PATROn VnGARI•, Madonna sitting on a veil on her head, holding infant Jesus in her right arm, mint-mark on each side; border of dots, (Legend variation!).
exergue, mint mark: K/ G//--, were struck by Johannes Constorfer, kammergraf, (by Pohl), diameter: 16,0mm, weight: 0,46g, axis: 6h,
mint: Hungary, Körmöcbánya (Kremnitz, today Slovakia: Kremnica) by Pohl,
date: 1472-1478 A.D. (Pohl),
ref: Huszár-718, CNH-2-234, Unger-564.c., Pohl-219-03,
Q-001
quadrans
|
|
040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.e, P-219-05, K/ P/V//--, Madonna and child, #01040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.e, P-219-05, K/ P/V//--, Madonna and child, #01
avers: ✠m•mAThIЄ•R•hVnGARIЄ, Hungarian shield, four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, Bohemian lion with Crown). Inside of the central shield, the raven standing and turning left. The ring in its beak, (Legend variation!).
reverse: •PATROn VnGAR•, Madonna sitting on a veil on her head, holding infant Jesus in her right arm, mint-mark on each side; border of dots,(Legend variation!).
exergue, mint mark: K/ P/V//--, were struck by Paul Peck/Veit Mühlstein, kammergraf, (by Pohl), diameter: 15,5-16,5mm, weight: 0,44g, axis: 10h,
mint: Hungary, Körmöcbánya (Kremnitz, today Slovakia: Kremnica) by Pohl,
date: 1472-1478 A.D. (Pohl),
ref: Huszár-718, CNH-2-234, Unger-564.e., Pohl-219-05,
Q-001
quadrans
|
|
040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.f, P-219-04, K/P//--, Madonna and child, #01040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.f, P-219-04, K/P//--, Madonna and child, #01
avers: ✠mOnЄTA•mAThIЄ•R•VnGARI, Hungarian shield, four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, Bohemian lion with Crown). Inside of the central shield, the raven standing and turning left. The ring in its beak, (Legend variation!).
reverse: •PATROn VnGARI•, Madonna sitting on a veil on her head, holding infant Jesus in her right arm, mint-mark on each side; border of dots,(Legend variation!).
exergue, mint mark: K/P//--, were struck by Paul Peck, (by Pohl), diameter: 15,5-16,0mm, weight: 0,53g, axis: 1h,
mint: Hungary, Körmöcbánya (Kremnitz, today Slovakia: Kremnica) by Pohl,
date: 1472-1478 A.D. (Pohl),
ref: Huszár-718, CNH-2-234, Unger-564.f., Pohl-219-04,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.g, P-219-02, K/A//--, Madonna and child, #01040 Mátyás Hunyadi., (Matthias Corvinus), King of Hungary, (1458-1490 A.D.) AR Denarius, H-718, C2-234, U-564.g, P-219-02, K/A//--, Madonna and child, #01
avers: ✠mOnЄTA•mAThIЄ•R•VnGARI, Hungarian shield, four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, Bohemian lion with Crown). Inside of the central shield, the raven standing and turning left. The ring in its beak, (Legend variation!).
reverse: •PATROnA VnGARIЄ•, Madonna sitting on a veil on her head, holding infant Jesus in her right arm, mint-mark on each side; border of dots,(Legend variation!).
exergue, mint mark: K/A//--, were struck by Augustin Langsfelder, (by Pohl), diameter: 15,0-16,5mm, weight: 0,62g, axis: 2h,
mint: Hungary, Körmöcbánya (Kremnitz, today Slovakia: Kremnica) by Pohl,
date: 1472-1478 A.D. (Pohl),
ref: Huszár-718, CNH-2-234, Unger-564.g., Pohl-219-02,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
064 - Septimius Severus denarius - RIC 234 Obv:- SEVERVS PIVS AVG, Laureate head right
Rev:- P M TR P XVIII COS III P P, Neptune, god of the Sea, stands facing left, his right foot upon a rock, holding his Trident & rostina, hand on knee
Minted in Rome, 209 A.D
References:- VM 126/2, RIC 234, RSC 543 maridvnvm
|
|
111 Florianus (276-282 A.D.), T-4234, RIC V-I 030, Rome, AE-Antoninianus, FIDES MILIT, -/-//XXIE, Bust-D2, Fides standing left, #1111 Florianus (276-282 A.D.), T-4234, RIC V-I 030, Rome, AE-Antoninianus, FIDES MILIT, -/-//XXIE, Bust-D2, Fides standing left, #1
avers: IMP-C-FLORIANVS-AVG, Bust right, radiate, cuirassed and draped with paludamentum, seen from rear, (D2).
revers: FIDES-MILIT, Fides standing left, holding long sceptre in right hand and transverse standard in left hand, (Fides 6).
exerg: -/-//XXIE, diameter: 21-21,5mm, weight: 3,67g, axes: 110h,
mint: Roma, 1st.issue, 5th.off., date: 276 A.D., ref: RIC-V-I-30, T-(Estiot)-4234,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
154 Jovianus (363-364 A.D.), Sirmium, RIC VIII 234, AE-1, VICTORIA ROMANORVM, -/-//TESΓ, Jovian standing front, Scarce! #1154 Jovianus (363-364 A.D.), Sirmium, RIC VIII 234, AE-1, VICTORIA ROMANORVM, -/-//TESΓ, Jovian standing front, Scarce! #1
avers: D N IOVIA NVS P F AVG, Rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right.
reverse: VICTORIA ROMANORVM, Jovian standing front, head right, holding Victory and labarum.
exergue: -/-//TESΓ, diameter: 28,0-29,0mm, weight: 6,32g, axis: 5h,
mint: Thessalonica, date: 363-64 A.D.,
ref: RIC VIII 234, p-, Scarce!
Q-001quadrans
|
|
161-180 AD - MARCUS AURELIUS AE as - struck 177-178 ADobv: M ANTONINVS AVG TRP XXXII (laureate head right)
rev: IMP VIIII COS III PP (Victory advancing left, holding wreath & palm), S-C in field
ref: RIC III 1234, C.372
10.15gms, 24mm, berserker
|
|
22.31. Béla IV., King of Hungary, (1235-1270 A.D.), CÁC III. 22.31.1.2./a01.4./05., H-299, CNH I.-234, U-222, AR-Denar, #0122.31. Béla IV., King of Hungary, (1235-1270 A.D.), CÁC III. 22.31.1.2./a01.4./05., H-299, CNH I.-234, U-222, AR-Denar, #01
avers: Emperor facing, draped with Crown, long hair, line border.
reverse: Cross and circle within R, B-E-L-A, line border.
exergue: -/-//--, diameter: 12,3 mm, weight: 0,58g, axis: 3h,
mint: , date: 1235-1270 A.D., ref: Huszár-299, CNH I.-234, Unger-222,
CÁC III. 22.31.1.2./a01.4./05.,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
235Maximinus I 235-8 AD
AE 24 mm
Thessalonica in Macedon
Kabeiros standing left holding rhyto and hammer
Lindgren II 1234, BMC 111v, SNG Cop 425vmauseus
|
|
314. Claudius IIMarcus Aurelius Claudius Gothicus (May 10, 213/214 - January, 270), more often referred to as Claudius II, ruled the Roman Empire for less than two years (268 - 270), but during that brief time, he was so successful and beloved by the people of Rome that he attained divine status.
His origin is uncertain. Claudius was either from Syrmia (Sirmium; in Pannonia Inferior) or from Dardania (in Moesia Superior). Claudius was the commander of the Roman army that defeated decisively the Goths at the battle of Naissus, in September 268; in the same month, he attained the throne, amid charges, never proven, that he murdered his predecessor Gallienus. However, he soon proved to be less than bloodthirsty, as he asked the Roman Senate to spare the lives of Gallienus' family and supporters. He was less magnanimous toward Rome's enemies, however, and it was to this that he owed his popularity.
Claudius, like Maximinus Thrax before him, was of barbarian birth. After an interlude of failed aristocratic Roman emperors since Maximinus's death, Claudius was the first in a series of tough soldier-emperors who would eventually restore the Empire from the Crisis of the third century.
At the time of his accession, the Roman Empire was in serious danger from several incursions, both within and outside its borders. The most pressing of these was an invasion of Illyricum and Pannonia by the Goths. Not long after being named emperor (or just prior to Gallienus' death, depending on the source), he won his greatest victory, and one of the greatest in the history of Roman arms.
At the Battle of Naissus, Claudius and his legions routed a huge Gothic army. Together with his cavalry commander, the future Emperor Aurelian, the Romans took thousands of prisoners, destroyed the Gothic cavalry as a force and stormed their chariot laager (a circular alignment of battle-wagons long favored by the Goths). The victory earned Claudius his surname of "Gothicus" (conqueror of the Goths), and that is how he is known to this day. More importantly, the Goths were soon driven back across the Danube River, and a century passed before they again posed a serious threat to the empire.
While this was going on, the Germanic tribe known as the Alamanni had crossed the Alps and attacked the empire. Claudius responded quickly and swiftly, routing the Alamanni at the Battle of Lake Benacus in the late fall of 268, a few months after the battle of Naissus. He then turned on the "Gallic Empire", ruled by a pretender for the past 15 years and encompassing Britain, Gaul and Spain. He won several victories and soon regained control of Spain and the Rhone river valley of Gaul. This set the stage for the ultimate destruction of the Gallic Empire under Aurelian.
However, Claudius did not live long enough to fulfill his goal of reuniting all the lost territories of the empire. Late in 269 he was preparing to go to war against the Vandals, who were raiding in Pannonia. However, he fell victim to an epidemic of plague and died early in January of 270. Before his death, he is thought to have named Aurelian as his successor, although Claudius' brother Quintillus briefly seized power.
The Senate immediately deified Claudius as "Divus Claudius Gothicus", making him one of the few Roman emperors of the period to be so honored.
Historia Augusta reports Claudius and Quintillus having another brother named Crispus and through him a niece. Said niece Claudia reportedly married Eutropius and was mother to Constantius Chlorus. Historians however suspect this account to be a genealogical fabrication by Constantine the Great.
Claudius II Gothicus AE Antoninianus. Cyzicus mint. IMP CLAVDIVS P F AVG, radiate, draped bust right / FORTUNA REDUX, Fortuna standing left with rudder & cornucopiae. RIC 234, Cohen 88.ecoli
|
|
94-45 - CLAUDIO GOTICO (268 - 270 D.C.)ANTIGUA FALSIFICACIÓN ó ACUÑACIÓN NO OFICIAL
AE Minimus? (Pequeño módulo) 14 x 13 mm 2.2 gr.
Anv: "[DIVO CLAVDIO]", Cabeza radiada viendo a derecha.
Rev: "[CON]SEC[RATIO]", Aguila parada de frente con su cabeza hacia la derecha y sus alas extendidas
IMITACIÓN ITALIANA, Después de la revuelta de Mont Caelius (Una de las 7 colinas de Roma, hoy Celio) de Roma en 271 D.C., los monetarios de la ciudad perdieron su estatus de monetarios oficiales, sin embargo continuaron acuñando moneda, en Italia del norte, así pasaron a ser simples falsificadores.
También se acuñaron en forma irregular en Las Galias e Hispania.
Acuñada después de 271 D.C.
Ceca: No oficial
Referencias: Sim.RIC Va #266 P.234, Sim.Sear RCTV III #11459 P.412 y Nota P.413, Sim.Cohen VI #41 P.134, Sim.DVM #44/2 P.256mdelvalle
|
|
94-46 - CLAUDIO GOTICO (268 - 270 D.C.)ANTIGUA FALSIFICACIÓN ó ACUÑACIÓN NO OFICIAL
AE Minimus? (Pequeño módulo) 14 x 13 mm 2.2 gr.
Anv: "[DIVO CLAVDIO]" - Cabeza radiada viendo a derecha.
Rev: "[CONSE]CRATIO" - Aguila parada de frente con su cabeza hacia la derecha y sus alas extendidas.
IMITACIÓN ITALIANA, Después de la revuelta de Mont Caelius (Una de las 7 colinas de Roma, hoy Celio) de Roma en 271 D.C., los monetarios de la ciudad perdieron su estatus de monetarios oficiales, sin embargo continuaron acuñando moneda, en Italia del norte, así pasaron a ser simples falsificadores.
También se acuñaron en forma irregular en Las Galias e Hispania.
Acuñada después de 271 D.C.
Ceca: No oficial
Referencias: Sim.RIC Va #266 P.234, Sim.Sear RCTV III #11459 P.412 y Nota P.413, Sim.Cohen VI #41 P.134, Sim.DVM #44/2 P.256mdelvalle
|
|
98-117 AD Trajan Denarius HerculesIMP CAES NERVA TRAIAN AVG GERM, laureate head right
P M TR P COS IIII P P, statue of Hercules holding club and lion skin, set on low base; mint luster, light toning,
Rome mint, 101-102 A.D, 3.54g, 18.6mm, 180o Reference:RIC 49, RSC 234, BMC 86.
exceptionally well struck reverse for the issue. Ex-Forumjimwho523
|
|
Alexander II Zabinas, AE21Alexander II Zabinas (128-122 BC)
21mm, 8.07g
obv: radiate and diademed head right
rev: ΒΑΣΙΛΕ[ΩΣ] ΑΛΕΞΑΝ∆[ΡΟΥ]; double cornucopia, A and caduceus to left, Π to right
HGC 9, p. 234, #1164areich
|
|
Antoninus Pius: LIBERALITASAntoninus Pius, 138-161. Denarius. Obverse - ANTONINVS AVG PIVS PP TR P XVII Antoninus, his laureate head right. Reverse - LIBERALITAS VII COS IIII Liberalitas standing left, pouring coins from a cornucopiae.
Refers to the 7th donative ca. 153 A.D., to mark the 15th anniversary of the reign. Minted in Rome 154 A.D. (TRP XVII). Sear RCV II: 4091, RIC 234, RSC 519.
Podiceps
|
|
Baktria, Diodotus I or II (as Antiochos II) AV StaterDiodotus I i/n/o Antiochos II. 256-239/225 BC. AV Stater (8.36 gms, 19.1mm, 6h). Diademed head of Diodotos I r. Test cut. / Zeus Bremetes striding l., brandishing thunderbolt. ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ r., ΑΝΤΙΟΧΟΥ l. Eagle and wreath to inner l. EF. Ponterio Auction 141 #1573.
Bopearachchi Série 1A; HGC 9 #233/234, 12 #19/20; Holt Series C Group 3 #10-11; SC 630; SNG ANS 9 #75; Newell ESM 723 (plate LIII #15); Sear Greek 629. Anaximander
|
|
CAESARVM NOSTRORVM, VOT V in wreath, Rome RIC 234Crispus, Caesar 317-326 A.D. Bronze AE 3, RIC VII 234, Rome mint, 321 AD. obverse CRISPVS NOB CAES, laureate draped & cuirassed bust right; reverse CAESARVM NOSTRORVM, VOT V in wreath, RT in ex; ex FORVM. Podiceps
|
|
|
Constantine I IOVI CONSERVATOI AVGG NN RIC VI Siscia 234Follis, 20x22mm, 3.56g.
Obverse: IMP CONSTANTINVS PF AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust R.
Reverse: IOVI CON-SERVATORI AVGG NN, Jupier standing L with victory and sceptre, eagle with wreath at his feet. A in R. field.
Exe: SIS (Siscia, Officina 1).
RIC VI 234, early 313, C.Robert_Brenchley
|
|
Denarius, P. Servilius RullusDenarius, P. Servilius Rullus
RRC: 328/1
100 bc
4,03 gr
AV: Bust of Minerva left, helmeted, wearing aegis "RVLLI"
RV: Victoria in biga right; holding palm and reins; below, P "P. SERVILI. M. F."
ex Artemide Aste, eLive auction 5b, Lot 234, 11.11.2018
Norbert
|
|
Diva Faustina SeniorDIVA AVG FAVSTINA, draped bust right / PIE-TAS AVG, Pietas standing left, dropping incense on altar. RIC 394a, RSC 234, BMC 311mestreaudi
|
|
Domitian as Caesar RIC II V0957Domitian as Caesar AR Denarius. Rome Mint 77-78 A.D. (3.08g, 17.9m, 6h). CɅESɅR ɅVG F DOMITIɅNVS, laureate head right. Rev: COS V in exergue, horseman galloping r. r. hand raised behind. RIC II V957, BMC V234, RSC 49.
The rider is unidentified on this reverse. Theories range from some type of commemorative, to Domitian himself, and Mars calling Rome to battle in the East where Domitian desired a command around this time. This example is worn, but has full legends and decent reverse details.Lucas H
|
|
Egypt, Alexandria, AD 233/234, Severus Alexander, NikeSeverus Alexander
Alexandria
Billon-Tetradrachm
Obv.: A KAI MAP AYP CЄY AΛЄΞANΔPOC, Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust
Rev.: LIΓ (year 13 = 233/234), Nike advancing left, holding palm and wreath; palm to outer left, date to inner left
Billon, 24.5mm, 15.56gshanxi
|
|
Elagabalus Victoria AvgElagabalus, 218-222 AD, silver denarius, Rome, 2g, 19mm, BMC 234, RSC 300, RIC 161
OBV: IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, Laureate bust right
REV: VICTORIA AVG;Victory flying left
SCARCE
SRukke
|
|
Elagabalus, Silver denarius, 16 May 218 - 11 March 222 A.D. AR18mmElagabalus, Silver denarius, 16 May 218 - 11 March 222 A.D.
Obv. IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right, from behind
Rev. VICTORIA AVG, Victory flying left holding diadem in both hands, at each side a small shield, star right
Ref. BMCRE V 234, RIC IV 161, RSC III 300a
Ex. Forvm ancient coins.Lee S
|
|
Faustina I Pietas RIC III 394aFaustina I, Silver Denarius, Rome, 175 AD, 17.84mm, 2.8g, Seaby 1336, RSC 234, BMCRE 311 (Antoninus), RIC III 394a,
OBV: DIVA AVG FAVSTINA, draped bust right / PIE-[T]AS AVG, Pietas standing left, dropping
REV: PIETA-S AVG, Pietas standing left, dropping incense on altar
SRukke
|
|
FORTVNA REDVX, RIC V 234Claudius II Gothicus, September 268 - August or September 270 A.D. Bronze antoninianus, RIC V 234, VF/Fair, Cyzicus mint, 3.575g, 21.0mm, 180o, obverse IMP CLAVDIVS P F AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right, from behind; reverse FORTVNA REDVX, Fortuna standing right, rudder in right, cornucopia in left, S P Q R in ex. Ex FORVM, photo credit FORVMPodiceps
|
|
GALBA Denarius, RIC 234, VictoryOBV: IMPSERGALBACAESARAVGPM - Laureate head right
REV: VICTORIAPR - Victory standing left on globe, holding wreath and palm
3.2g, 18mm
Minted at Rome, Oct-Nov 68 ADLegatus
|
|
Geta - RIC 18Geta, as Caesar, Silver Denarius. 200-202 AD. P SEPT GETA CAES PONT, draped bust right / PRINC IVVENTVTIS, Geta, in military dress, standing left with baton & scepter, trophy behind. RSC 157b, RIC 18, BMC 234, RCV 7196Bud Stewart
|
|
Gordian III, 238 - 244 ADObv: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III facing right.
Rev: PM TRP III COS PP, Gordian on horseback pacing left, holding a spear and raising right hand.
Silver Denarius, Rome mint, 240 - 241 AD
3.9 grams, 19 mm, 180°
RIC IViii 81, RSC 234, S8678, VM 72Matt Inglima
|
|
Gordian III, 238 - 244 ADObv: IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gordian III facing right.
Rev: PM TRP III COS PP, Gordian on horseback pacing left, holding a spear and raising right hand.
Silver Denarius, Rome mint, 240 - 241 AD
3 grams, 19.2 mm, 180°
RIC IViii 81, RSC 234, S8678, VM 72
Ex: FORVMMatt Inglima
|
|
GREEK, Kos, Carian Islands, c. 345 - 340 B.C.GS86516. Silver didrachm, Pixodarus p. 234, 13 (A2/P7); SNG Cop 619; Weber 6629; HGC 6 1305 (R1); BMC Caria p. 195, 18 ff. var. (magistrate); SNG Keckman 287 var. (same), gVF, attractive style, bold strike, toned, tight flan cutting off ethnic, corrosion, edge cracks, Kos mint, weight 6.369g, maximum diameter 20.2mm, die axis 0o, Ma[...], magistrate, c. 345 - 340 B.C.; obverse bearded head of Herakles right, wearing Nemean lion scalp headdress; reverse veiled female (Halkiopi?) head left, MA (magistrate) behind, KΩION below; from the David Cannon Collection, ex Beast Coins; rareJoe Sermarini
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-3, Unger 564c, Réthy II 234, Frynas 34.36. Hungary. Matthias Corvinus/Mátyás Hunyadi (1458-1490)
AR denar AR denar (aver. fineness approx. .500 AR; ideal weight .59023 g.); .48 g., 15.90 mm. max., 0°
Obv: + MOnETA MAThIE • R • VnGAR, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), raven in escutcheon.
Rev: • PATROn – VnGARI •, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–C in fields.
The type was struck 1472-1478 per Pohl. Huszár, Unger, Gyöngyössy and Frynas all assign a date range of 1471-1481.
This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz/Körmöcbánya, now Kremnica, Slovakia, by Johannes Constorfer, kammergraf. Although Pohl does not assign a specific date to this mark, Gyöngyössy assigns 1471.
Huszár/Pohl rarity 4, Unger value 7 DM, Frynas rarity C. By my provisional estimate, roughly 30% of this type bears this mark. Coins of this type with this mark most commonly have this obverse legend (or a minor variant). In my article on this coinage, I classified coins bearing this legend as Subtype A.Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-2, Unger 564g, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype A Hungary. Matthias "Corvinus" (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar.
Obv: + MOnETA MAThIE • R • VnGARIE, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), raven in escutcheon.
Rev: • PATROnA – VnGARI •, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–A (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Augustin Langsfelder, kammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype A is the more common, comprising around 80% of the coins of the emission. This privy mark appears on only this subtype, and on around 20% of the coins of this type.
In Subtype A coins, the obverse legend is + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant). They are described and/or depicted in all of the catalogs.
Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-3, Unger 564c, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype A Hungary. Matthias "Corvinus" (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar.
Obv: + MOnETA MAThIE • R • VnGAR, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), raven in escutcheon.
Rev: • PATROn – VnGARI •, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–C (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Johannes Constorfer, kammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype A is the more common, comprising around 80% of the coins of the emission. This privy mark appears on almost 30% of the coins of this type.
In Subtype A coins, the obverse legend is + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant). They are described and/or depicted in all of the catalogs.
Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-4, Unger 564f, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype A Hungary. Matthias "Corvinus" (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar.
Obv: + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGAR, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), raven in escutcheon.
Rev: • PATROn – VnGARI •, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–P (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Paul Peck, kammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype A is the more common, comprising around 80% of the coins of the emission.
In Subtype A coins, the obverse legend is + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant). They are described and/or depicted in all of the catalogs.Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-5, Unger 564e, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype B Hungary. Matthias "Corvinus" (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar, doublestrike.
Obv: [+] M • MAThIE • R [• VnGARI], Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), raven in escutcheon.
Rev: PATRO — [VnGARIE], Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K—P/V (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Paul Peck, kammergraf, and Veit Mülstein, oberkammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype B is the less common, comprising around 20% of the coins of the emission. This privy mark appears on around 5% of the coins of this type.
In Subtype B coins, the obverse legend is + M • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant). They are neither described nor depicted in any of the catalogs.
Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-6, Unger 564d, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype AHungary. Matthias “Corvinus” (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar, 0.455 g., 15.9 mm, die orientation 45°.
Obv: + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGAR, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), legless raven in escutcheon.
Rev: PATROn – VnGAR, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–V (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Veit Mülstein, oberkammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype A is the more common, comprising around 80% of the coins of the emission. This privy mark appears on coins of both subtypes and on around 15% of the coins of this type.
In Subtype A coins, the obverse legend is + MOnETA • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant).
ex Forum Ancient Coins Stkp
|
|
Huszár 718, Pohl 219-6, Unger 564d, Réthy II 234, Kaplan Subtype B Hungary. Matthias "Corvinus" (Mátyás Hunyadi in Hun.) (1458-1490). AR denar.
Obv: + M • MAThIE • R • VnGARI, Four-part shield with Hungarian arms (Árpádian stripes, patriarchal cross, Dalmatian leopard heads, crowned lion of Berszterce), legless raven in escutcheon.
Rev: PATRO – VnGAR – •, Veiled Madonna with infant Jesus to her right, K–V (privy mark) in fields.
The type was struck 1471-1481 (per Huszár & Unger) or 1472-1478 (per Pohl), with an average fineness of approximately .500 silver, and an average weight of .59023 g. This privy mark was struck in Kremnitz (formerly Körmöcbánya, Hungary, now Kremnica, Slovakia) by Veit Mülstein, oberkammergraf (per Pohl).
Huszár/Pohl rarity rating 4. This is a variable type with two subtypes. Subtype B is the less common, comprising around 20% of the coins of the emission. This privy mark appears on coins of both subtypes and on around 15% of the coins of this type.
In Subtype B coins, the obverse legend is + M • MAThIE • R • VnGARIE (or a minor variant). They are neither described nor depicted in any of the catalogs.
Stkp
|
|
Julia DomnaAe 24 (diassarion)
Obv. Dr bust r, IVLIA - AVGVSTA round.
Rev. Nike r, stg on globe, palm over l shoulder, wreath in raised r hand, MVNICIP - STOBE round.
Josifovski 234, same reverse die (R84)
7.68 gm, 24.5 mm
|
|
Julia Domna, AE 23 DiassariaIVLIA AVGVSTA
Bust draped, right
MVNICIP STOBE
Nike advancing right, holding wreath and palm, stepping on globe
Josifovski 232, 233, 235 same obverse die (V82)
Josifovski 234, same reverse die (R84)
Unlisted die pair
5.1 gwhitetd49
|
|
Julia Domna, AE 23 Diassaria - duplicate specimenIVLIA AVGVSTA
Bust draped, right
MVNICIP STOBE
Nike advancing right, holding wreath and palm, stepping on globe
Josifovski 232, 233, 235 same obverse die (V82), citing Vienna FL 1598, Vienna IN 5597, Paris 1989
Josifovski 234, same reverse die (R84), citing Vienna IN 5598
Kuzmanovic Collection 464-465whitetd49
|
|
Julia Domna, Middle bronzeMiddle bronze struck in Rome AD 214
IVLIA PIA FELIX AVG, Diademed and draped bust of Domna right
VESTA, sacrifice scene before temple of Vesta
10.4 gr
Ref : RIC # 607, Cohen #234, RCV #7137
This coin is now belonging to arizonarobinPotator II
|
|
Julia Domna, VestaJulia Domna
10.4 gr; Ae 26mm; struck in Rome AD 214
IVLIA PIA FELIX AVG
Diademed and draped bust right
VESTA
sacrifice scene before temple of Vesta
RIC 607, Cohen 234, RCV 7137 /Prov. Ex Potator II Collection arizonarobin
|
|
JULIEN II - LYON - RIC 234Silique, 360-363, S
A/D N FL CL IVLI-ANVS P F AVG
Dominus Noster Claudius Flavius Iulianus Pius Felix Augustus, Notre Seigneur Flavius Claude Julien Pieux et Heureux Auguste
Buste barbu à droite, diadémé (Perles), drapé et cuirassé.
R/VOT/X/MVLT/XX//PLVG
Votis decennalibus/Multis vicennalibus, Vœux pour le dixième anniversaire de règne et pour le vingtième à venir
Légende en 4 lignes dans une couronne de lauriers fermée.
Argent - 1.1 gr - 15.94 mm - 12h
RIC VIII 234, RSC 148a
Siliquae
|
|
JULIEN II - LYON - RIC 234Silique, 360-363, S
A/D N FL CL IVLI-ANVS P F AVG
Dominus Noster Claudius Flavius Iulianus Pius Felix Augustus, Notre Seigneur Flavius Claude Julien Pieux et Heureux Auguste
Buste à droite, diadémé (Perles), drapé et cuirassé.
R/VOT/X/MVLT/XX//PLVG
Votis decennalibus/Multis vicennalibus, Vœux pour le dixième anniversaire de règne et pour le vingtième à venir
Légende en 4 lignes dans une couronne de lauriers fermée.
Argent - 2.05 gr - 17.1 mm - 11h
RIC VIII 234, RSC 148a
Siliquae
|
|
Lydia, Blaundos, Herakles / eagle, AE17time of Marc Aurel
17mm, 3.88g, 12h
obv: BΛAVNΔE-ΩN, bare head of Herakles right
rev: CTP KΛ - BAΛEPIAN; eagle standing facing, head left on two bones
ex CNG e-auction 234, Lot 152
BMC Lydia, p. 46, #34-37 (not pictured)
areich
|
|
Orodes II., 57 - 38 BCAR dr., 4,08gr, 20mm; Sellwood 46.12, Shore 234, Sunrise 370 ;
mint: Mithradatkart; axis: 12h;
obv.: bare-headed, left, w/ broad diadem, knot and 2 or 3 ribbons; medium-long hair in 5 waves, mustache, short beard in 3 rows of curls; multi-turn torque w/double pellet finial; wart at the base of the nostril; cuirass; crescent in upper right field; dotted border 7 to 14h;
rev.: archer, right, on throne, w/bow in one hand and monogram below; 7-line legend : (B)ΛCIΛEΩC (BΛ)CIΛEΩ retrograde N VPΣΛVoV, the 2 bottom lines are garbled as is the inner left line, (ΦI)ΛEΛΛHN (oC);
ex: H. Lanz, Germany.Schatz
|
|
Orodes II., 57 - 38 BCAR dr., 3,93gr, 21mm; Sellwood 46.12, Shore 234, Sunrise 370;
mint: Mithradatkart; axis: 12h:30;
obv.: bare-headed, left, w/ broad diadem, knot and 2 or 3 ribbons; medium-long hair in 5 waves, mustache, short beard in 3 rows of dots and dashes; multi-turn torque; w/double pellet finial; wart at the base of the nostril; cuirass; crescent in upper right field; traces of border 10 to 13h;
rev.: archer, right, on throne, w/bow in one hand and monogram below; 7-line legend : BΛΣIΛEΩC (BΛ)ΣIΛEΩ retrograde N VPCΛVV, the 2 bottom lines are garbled or illegible as is the inner left line, (Φ)IEΛΛNHY;
ex: CNG eAuction 246;Schatz
|
|
PIETAS AVGFaustina Senior Denarius. DIVA AVG FAVSTINA, draped bust right / PIE-TAS AVG, Pietas standing left, dropping incense on altar. RIC 394a, RSC 234, BMC 311.Podiceps
|
|
POST MEDIEVAL, AUSTRIA, SALZBURG, 1 TALER, 1670Silver coin with 28,84 grams
Ruler: Max Gandolph Graf-Küenburg (1668 - 1687)
Obv.: SANCT.RVDBERT VS.EPS.SALISB:1670
Rev.: MAX:GAND:D:G:AR:EP:SAL:SE:AP:L. (SVB.TVVM.PRAE SIDIVM.CONF VG.)
Ref.: Km#190, BR: 3234, Pr.: 1654
|
|
Ptolemy V Epiphanes; Alexandria; Isis; Svoronos 1234Ptolemaic Kingdom, Ptolemy V Epiphanes, 205/4 - 180 B.C. GB41476. Bronze AE 20, Svoronos 1234, SNG Cop 247, Alexandria mint, 15.302g, 27.2mm, 0o, obverse wreathed head of Isis right; reverse “ΠΤΟΛΕΜΑΙΟΥ ΒΑΣΙΛΕΩΣ”, eagle standing left on thunderbolt, wings spread. Ex FORVM, photo credit FORVMPodiceps
|
|
RIC 0580 DomitianusObv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VII. Laureate head right
Rev: IMP XIIII COS XIIII CENS P P P, Minerva standing left, with thunderbolt and spear; shield at her left side
AR/Denarius (19.99 mm 3.139 g 6h) Struck in Rome 88 A.D. (1st Issue)
RIC 580 (C3), RSC 234, BMCRE 119-21, BNF 116FlaviusDomitianus
|
|
RIC 0789A DomitianusObv: IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P XV, Laureate head right with aegis seen from front
Rev: IMP XXII COS XVII CENS P P P, Minerva standing left, with thunderbolt and spear; shield at her left side
AR/Denarius (18,46 mm 3.47 g 6h) Struck in Rome 95-96 A.D.
Unpublished variant (aegis) of RIC 789. BMCRE 234, RSC 291
Ex H.D. Rauch Auktion 97 lot 484FlaviusDomitianus
|
|
Roman Empire, GALBA Denarius, RIC 234, VictoryOBV: IMPSERGALBACAESARAVGPM - Laureate head right
REV: VICTORIA PR - Victory standing left on globe, holding wreath and palm
3.2g, 18mm
Minted at Rome, Oct-Nov 68 ADLegatus
|
|
ROMAN EMPIRE, Postumus (260-269 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 234, Lugdunum, VICTORIA-AVG, Victory advancing left,098 Postumus (260-269 A.D.), AE-Antoninianus, RIC V-II 234, Lugdunum, VICTORIA-AVG, Victory advancing left,
avers:- IMP-C-POSTVMVS-PF-AVG, Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right.
revers:- VICTORIA-AVG, Victory advancing left, holding wreath and palm; seated captive to left.
exerg: , diameter: 21-24mm, weight: 2,62g, axes: 5h,
mint: Lugdunum, date: 260-269 A.D., ref: RIC-V-II-234, p-355, C-386,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
Seleucid - Alexander II Zabinas (128-123 BCE)Metal/Size: AE21; Weight: 8.03 grams; Denomination: Bronze Unit; Mint: Seleucia-on-the-Tigris; Date: 128-123 BCE; Obverse: Radiate and diademed head right, beads to right. Reverse: ΒΑΣΙΛΕ[ΩΣ] ΑΛΕΞΑΝ∆[ΡΟΥ] (King Alexander); double cornucopia, A and caduceus to left, Π to right
References: HGC 9, p. 234, #1164; Sear #7127.museumguy
|
|
Sextus Pompey - As - Sear Imperators 234Obv: Laureate head of Janus, altar between, MAGNVS above, PIVS IMP F below
Rev: Prow of galley right, EPPIVS above, LEG below
Weight: 16,92 g
Mint: Spanish mint
Date: 45-44 BC
Ref: RPC 487, Sear Imperators 234, Crawford 478/1a
vs1969
|
|
Tetricus I, mid 271 - Spring 274 A.D. AE17mm.3.1grm.Tetricus I, mid 271 - Spring 274 A.D.
Obv. IMP C TETRICVS P F AVG (or similar), radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev. FIDES MILITVM, Fides standing left, flanked by standards, one in each hand.
Ref. RIC V 68, Cohen VI 37, SRCV III 11234, Hunter IV - (p. ci)
Ex. Forvm Ancient Coins.Lee S
|
|
Trajan - AR denariusRome
114-117 AD
laureate and draped bust right
IMP CAES NER TRAIANO OPTIMO AVG GER DAC
Trajan's column surmounted with a statue of Trajan; two eagles at base and a wreath with spirals and dots on column
P M TR P COS_VI P P S P Q R
RIC II 356; BnF IV 837, RSC II 284, Strack I 234, BMCRE III 565, Hunter II 184, SRCV II 3151,
3,0g 19mm
ex Vienna International AuctionsJ. B.
|
|
[1009a] Severus Alexander, 13 March 222 - March 235 A.D.Silver denarius, RIC 70, RSC 325, S -, EF, Rome mint, 2.803g, 20.7mm, 0o, 227 A.D.; Obverse: IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG, laureate and draped bust right; Reverse: P M TR P VI COS II P P, Emperor standing left, sacrificing from patera in right over a tripod, scroll in left; cameo-like obverse with toned portrait and legend and bright fields, slightly frosty surfaces, details of head on reverse figure unstruck, slightly irregular flan. Ex FORVM.
In this year Ardashir invaded Parthia and established the Sassanid Dynasty, which claimed direct descent from Xerxes and Darius. The Eastern power grew stronger and the threat to the Romans immense.
Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander was promoted from Caesar to Augustus after the murder of his cousin, Elagabalus. His reign was marked by great economic prosperity, and he enjoyed great success against the barbarian tribes. His mother Julia Mamaea was the real power in the empire, controlling her son's policies and even his personal life with great authority. Severus had an oratory where he prayed under the edict, written on the wall, "Do not unto others what you would not have done to yourself" and the images of various prophets including Mithras, Zoroaster, Abraham and Jesus. Mutinous soldiers led by Maximinus I murdered both Severus Alexander and his mother (Joseph Sermarini).
De Imeratoribus Romanis,
An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors
Alexander Severus (A.D. 222-235)
Herbert W. Benario
Emory University
Introduction and Sources
"But as Alexander was a modest and dutiful youth, of only seventeen years of age, the reins of government were in the hands of two women, of his mother Mamaea, and of Maesa, his grandmother. After the death of the latter, who survived but a short time the elevation of Alexander, Mamaea remained the sole regent of her son and of the empire." (Gibbon, Decline and Fall, chap. 6: Modern Library Edition, p. 130)
"As the imperial system developed, it disclosed its various arcana one by one. How much does the personality of the ruler matter? Less and less, it should seem. Be he boy, buffoon, or philosopher, his conduct may not have much effect on the administration. Habit and routine took over, with groups and grades of bureaucrats at hand to fill the posts." (Syme, Emperors and Biography, 146)
The passages quoted above emphasize two important aspects of the principate of Severus Alexander (or Alexander Severus), his youth and the influence of women during his reign. The significance of the latter invites brief discourse about the four women known as the "Severan Julias," whose origin was Syria. Julia Domna became the second wife of Septimius Severus and bore him two sons, the later emperors Caracalla and Geta. Her role in the administration of her husband was significant, which her expansive titulature, "mother of the camp and the senate and the country," reflected. Her sister, Julia Maesa, had two daughters, each of whom produced a son who was to become emperor. Julia Soaemias was the mother of Elagabalus, and shared his fate when he was assassinated. Julia Mamaea bore Alexander, who succeeded his cousin; he was very young and hence much under the control of grandmother and mother. For the first time in its imperial history, the empire of Rome was de facto, though not de iure, governed by women.
The literary sources, while numerous, are limited in value. Chief among them, at least in scope, is the biography in the Historia Augusta, much the longest of all the lives in this peculiar collection. Though purporting to be the work of six authors in the early fourth century, it is now generally considered to have been produced by one author writing in the last years of this century. Spacious in its treatment of the emperor and extremely favorable to him on the whole, it has little historical merit, seeming rather an extended work of fiction. It must be used with the utmost caution.
Herodian, whose history covered the period 180-238, was a contemporary of Severus Alexander, and his coverage of the latter's reign is extensive. Another contemporary, Dio Cassius, who was consul in 229 and whose judgments would have been most valuable, is unfortunately useless here, since his history survives only in abbreviated form and covers barely a page of printed text for the whole reign (Book 80). Aurelius Victor, Eutropius, the Epitome de Caesaribus, and other Latin sources are extremely brief, informing us of only the occasional anecdote. Christian writers make minimal contribution; legal texts offer much instruction, particularly those dealing with or stemming from Ulpian; coins, inscriptions, papyri, and archaeology help fill the gaps left by the literary sources.
Early Life and Education
The future emperor was born in Arca Caesarea in Phoenicia on October 1, 208 although some sources put the date three years earlier (as Gibbon assumed, see above), the son of Gessius Marcianus, whose career advanced in the equestrian cursus, and of Julia Mamaea, niece of the then empress, Julia Domna, wife of Septimius Severus. He was raised quietly and well educated, at the instance of his mother. He came into the public eye only in 218, when, after Macrinus' murder of Caracalla and accession to the purple, he and his mother were declared hostes publici. In June of that year, Elagabalus defeated Macrinus and succeeded him as emperor. Alexander and Mamaea were soon rehabilitated. As his cousin's activities, religious, political, and personal, became increasingly unacceptable, Alexander was drawn ever more into public life. In mid 221, he assumed the toga virilis, was adopted by Elagabalus as a colleague, was granted the name Alexander, and elevated to the rank of Caesar. There had been talk that he was the illegitimate child of Caracalla, which won him support among the army, and this was confirmed, at least for public consumption, by his filiation in the official titulature back to Septimius. He was now styled Imp. Caes. M. Aurelii Antonini Pii Felicis Aug. fil., divi Antonini Magni Pii nepos, divi Severi pronepos M. Aurelius Alexander, nobilissimus Caesar imperi et sacerdotis, princeps iuventutis. The connection with Septimius Severus was crucial, since he was the only one of these predecessors who had been deified. Alexander was about 12½ years old. Less than a year later, on March 13, 222, with the murder of Elagabalus, Alexander was hailed as emperor by the army. He considered this date as his dies imperii. He became thereby the youngest emperor in Rome's history. He was immediately thereafter given the titles of Augustus, pater patriae, and pontifex maximus.
His Principate; Grandmother, Mother, Ulpian
Having had no experience in government, the young emperor was largely dependent upon the two senior women in his life to guide his actions. His grandmother, Julia Maesa, may well have died as early as 223, so that his mother, Julia Mamaea, played the major role in the empire's administration from early on until the end. The only other figures who could rival her were the two Praetorian Prefects, both eminent jurists, Ulpian and Paulus, who are well-known to us because of the numerous citations of their legal views and administrative decisions preserved in the Corpus Iuris Civilis. Both were members of Alexander's consilium. Alexander attempted to restore some of the senate's prestige and functions, but with little success. He was even unable to protect Ulpian against the anger of the praetorians, who then murdered the jurist in 223.
Had his principate been peaceful, he might have developed into a significant emperor, certainly in comparison with his immediate predecessors. He was married once, in 225 to Sallustia Orbiana, who received the official titulature Sallustia Barbia Orbiana Augusta, but she was banished to Libya two years later. Her father, L. Seius Sallustius, was perhaps raised to the rank of Caesar by Alexander and was put to death in 227 on a charge of attempted murder of the emperor. The only other recorded uprising against Alexander is that of Taurinus, who was hailed as Augustus but drowned himself in the Euphrates.
According to the HA life, Alexander was a "good" person, and his mother certainly attempted to guide him well, but much of the last decade of his reign was preoccupied with serious military threats against the empire's prestige, nay existence. In those dangerous circumstances, his abilities, which had not earlier been honed, proved inadequate.
Domestic Policy
Perhaps the greatest service which Alexander furnished Rome, certainly at the beginning of his reign, was the return to a sense of sanity and tradition after the madness and fanaticism of Elagabalus. He is said to have honored and worshipped a variety of individuals, including Christ. His amiability assisted his relationship with the senate, which gained in honor under him without any real increase in its power. Besides jurists in high office, literary figures were also so distinguished; Marius Maximus, the biographer, and Dio Cassius, the historian, gained second consulships, the former in 223, the latter in 229.
The emperor's building program made its mark upon the face of Rome. The last of the eleven great aqueducts, the aqua Alexandrina, was put into service in 226; he also rebuilt the thermae Neronianae in the Campus Martius in the following year and gave them his own name. Of the other constructions, perhaps the most intriguing are the Diaetae Mammaeae, apartments which he built for his mother on the Palatine.
The Persian and German Wars
The first great external challenge appeared in the east, where the Parthian dynasty, which had ruled the Iranian plateau and other large areas for centuries, and who for long had been one of Rome's great rivals, was overthrown by the Persian family of the Sassanids by 227. They aspired to restore their domain to include all the Asian lands which had been ruled in the glory days of the Persian Empire. Since this included Asia Minor as well as all other eastern provinces, the stage was set for continuing clashes with Rome.
These began late in the decade, with significant success early on for the Sassanids. But Rome gradually developed a defense against these incursions, and ultimately the emperor, with his mother and staff, went to the east in 231. There actual military command rested in the hands of his generals, but his presence gave additional weight to the empire's policy. Persia's early successes soon faded as Rome's armies brought their power and experience to bear. The result was an acceptance of the status quo rather than a settlement between the parties. This occurred in 233 and Alexander returned to Rome. His presence in the west was required by a German threat, particularly along the Rhine, where the tribes took advantage of the withdrawal of Roman troops for the eastern war.
In 234, Alexander and Julia Mammaea moved to Moguntiacum (Mainz), the capital of Upper Germany. The military situation had improved with the return of troops from the east, and an ambitious offensive campaign was planned, for which a bridge was built across the Rhine. But Alexander preferred to negotiate for peace by buying off the enemy. This policy outraged the soldiers, who mutinied in mid March 235 and killed the emperor and his mother. He had reached the age of 26½ years and had been emperor for almost precisely half his life. He was deified by the senate and received other posthumous honors. With the accession of Maximinus Thrax, the Severan dynasty came to an end.
Death and Evaluation
Tacitus' famous dictum about Galba, that he was properly considered capax imperii, capable of being emperor, until he showed, when emperor, that he was not, could never have been applied to Severus Alexander. A child when chance brought him to the principate, with only two recommendations, that he was different from Elagabalus and that he was part of the Severan family, he proved to be inadequate for the challenges of the time. Military experience was the prime attribute of an emperor now, which Alexander did not have, and that lack ultimately cost him his life. Guided by his mother and employing the services of distinguished men, he returned dignity to the imperial household and to the state. He did the best he could, but that best was not good enough in the early decades of the third century A.D., with the great threats from east and north challenging Rome's primacy and, indeed, existence.
Copyright (C) 2001, Herbert W. Benario. Published on De Imeratoribus Romanis, An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors; http://www.roman-emperors.org/alexsev.htm . Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr. Cleisthenes
|
|
[1009b] Severus Alexander, 13 March 222 - March 235 A.D.Silver denarius, RIC 19, S -, aF, Rome, 2.806g, 20.0mm, 0o, 223 A.D.; obverse IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG, laureate and draped bust right; reverse P M TR P II COS P P, Jupiter standing left cloak over arms, holding long scepter and thunderbolt. Nice portrait. Ex FORVM.
Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander was promoted from Caesar to Augustus after the murder of his cousin, Elagabalus. His reign was marked by great economic prosperity, and he enjoyed great success against the barbarian tribes. His mother Julia Mamaea was the real power in the empire, controlling her son's policies and even his personal life with great authority. Severus had an oratory where he prayed under the edict, written on the wall, "Do not unto others what you would not have done to yourself" and the images of various prophets including Mithras, Zoroaster, Abraham and Jesus. Mutinous soldiers led by Maximinus I murdered both Severus Alexander and his mother (Joseph Sermarini).
De Imeratoribus Romanis,
An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors
Alexander Severus (A.D. 222-235)
Herbert W. Benario
Emory University
Introduction and Sources
"But as Alexander was a modest and dutiful youth, of only seventeen years of age, the reins of government were in the hands of two women, of his mother Mamaea, and of Maesa, his grandmother. After the death of the latter, who survived but a short time the elevation of Alexander, Mamaea remained the sole regent of her son and of the empire." (Gibbon, Decline and Fall, chap. 6: Modern Library Edition, p. 130)
"As the imperial system developed, it disclosed its various arcana one by one. How much does the personality of the ruler matter? Less and less, it should seem. Be he boy, buffoon, or philosopher, his conduct may not have much effect on the administration. Habit and routine took over, with groups and grades of bureaucrats at hand to fill the posts." (Syme, Emperors and Biography, 146)
The passages quoted above emphasize two important aspects of the principate of Severus Alexander (or Alexander Severus), his youth and the influence of women during his reign. The significance of the latter invites brief discourse about the four women known as the "Severan Julias," whose origin was Syria. Julia Domna became the second wife of Septimius Severus and bore him two sons, the later emperors Caracalla and Geta. Her role in the administration of her husband was significant, which her expansive titulature, "mother of the camp and the senate and the country," reflected. Her sister, Julia Maesa, had two daughters, each of whom produced a son who was to become emperor. Julia Soaemias was the mother of Elagabalus, and shared his fate when he was assassinated. Julia Mamaea bore Alexander, who succeeded his cousin; he was very young and hence much under the control of grandmother and mother. For the first time in its imperial history, the empire of Rome was de facto, though not de iure, governed by women.
The literary sources, while numerous, are limited in value. Chief among them, at least in scope, is the biography in the Historia Augusta, much the longest of all the lives in this peculiar collection. Though purporting to be the work of six authors in the early fourth century, it is now generally considered to have been produced by one author writing in the last years of this century. Spacious in its treatment of the emperor and extremely favorable to him on the whole, it has little historical merit, seeming rather an extended work of fiction. It must be used with the utmost caution.
Herodian, whose history covered the period 180-238, was a contemporary of Severus Alexander, and his coverage of the latter's reign is extensive. Another contemporary, Dio Cassius, who was consul in 229 and whose judgments would have been most valuable, is unfortunately useless here, since his history survives only in abbreviated form and covers barely a page of printed text for the whole reign (Book 80). Aurelius Victor, Eutropius, the Epitome de Caesaribus, and other Latin sources are extremely brief, informing us of only the occasional anecdote. Christian writers make minimal contribution; legal texts offer much instruction, particularly those dealing with or stemming from Ulpian; coins, inscriptions, papyri, and archaeology help fill the gaps left by the literary sources.
Early Life and Education
The future emperor was born in Arca Caesarea in Phoenicia on October 1, 208 although some sources put the date three years earlier (as Gibbon assumed, see above), the son of Gessius Marcianus, whose career advanced in the equestrian cursus, and of Julia Mamaea, niece of the then empress, Julia Domna, wife of Septimius Severus. He was raised quietly and well educated, at the instance of his mother. He came into the public eye only in 218, when, after Macrinus' murder of Caracalla and accession to the purple, he and his mother were declared hostes publici. In June of that year, Elagabalus defeated Macrinus and succeeded him as emperor. Alexander and Mamaea were soon rehabilitated. As his cousin's activities, religious, political, and personal, became increasingly unacceptable, Alexander was drawn ever more into public life. In mid 221, he assumed the toga virilis, was adopted by Elagabalus as a colleague, was granted the name Alexander, and elevated to the rank of Caesar. There had been talk that he was the illegitimate child of Caracalla, which won him support among the army, and this was confirmed, at least for public consumption, by his filiation in the official titulature back to Septimius. He was now styled Imp. Caes. M. Aurelii Antonini Pii Felicis Aug. fil., divi Antonini Magni Pii nepos, divi Severi pronepos M. Aurelius Alexander, nobilissimus Caesar imperi et sacerdotis, princeps iuventutis. The connection with Septimius Severus was crucial, since he was the only one of these predecessors who had been deified. Alexander was about 12½ years old. Less than a year later, on March 13, 222, with the murder of Elagabalus, Alexander was hailed as emperor by the army. He considered this date as his dies imperii. He became thereby the youngest emperor in Rome's history. He was immediately thereafter given the titles of Augustus, pater patriae, and pontifex maximus.
His Principate; Grandmother, Mother, Ulpian
Having had no experience in government, the young emperor was largely dependent upon the two senior women in his life to guide his actions. His grandmother, Julia Maesa, may well have died as early as 223, so that his mother, Julia Mamaea, played the major role in the empire's administration from early on until the end. The only other figures who could rival her were the two Praetorian Prefects, both eminent jurists, Ulpian and Paulus, who are well-known to us because of the numerous citations of their legal views and administrative decisions preserved in the Corpus Iuris Civilis. Both were members of Alexander's consilium. Alexander attempted to restore some of the senate's prestige and functions, but with little success. He was even unable to protect Ulpian against the anger of the praetorians, who then murdered the jurist in 223.
Had his principate been peaceful, he might have developed into a significant emperor, certainly in comparison with his immediate predecessors. He was married once, in 225 to Sallustia Orbiana, who received the official titulature Sallustia Barbia Orbiana Augusta, but she was banished to Libya two years later. Her father, L. Seius Sallustius, was perhaps raised to the rank of Caesar by Alexander and was put to death in 227 on a charge of attempted murder of the emperor. The only other recorded uprising against Alexander is that of Taurinus, who was hailed as Augustus but drowned himself in the Euphrates.
According to the HA life, Alexander was a "good" person, and his mother certainly attempted to guide him well, but much of the last decade of his reign was preoccupied with serious military threats against the empire's prestige, nay existence. In those dangerous circumstances, his abilities, which had not earlier been honed, proved inadequate.
Domestic Policy
Perhaps the greatest service which Alexander furnished Rome, certainly at the beginning of his reign, was the return to a sense of sanity and tradition after the madness and fanaticism of Elagabalus. He is said to have honored and worshipped a variety of individuals, including Christ. His amiability assisted his relationship with the senate, which gained in honor under him without any real increase in its power. Besides jurists in high office, literary figures were also so distinguished; Marius Maximus, the biographer, and Dio Cassius, the historian, gained second consulships, the former in 223, the latter in 229.
The emperor's building program made its mark upon the face of Rome. The last of the eleven great aqueducts, the aqua Alexandrina, was put into service in 226; he also rebuilt the thermae Neronianae in the Campus Martius in the following year and gave them his own name. Of the other constructions, perhaps the most intriguing are the Diaetae Mammaeae, apartments which he built for his mother on the Palatine.
The Persian and German Wars
The first great external challenge appeared in the east, where the Parthian dynasty, which had ruled the Iranian plateau and other large areas for centuries, and who for long had been one of Rome's great rivals, was overthrown by the Persian family of the Sassanids by 227. They aspired to restore their domain to include all the Asian lands which had been ruled in the glory days of the Persian Empire. Since this included Asia Minor as well as all other eastern provinces, the stage was set for continuing clashes with Rome.
These began late in the decade, with significant success early on for the Sassanids. But Rome gradually developed a defense against these incursions, and ultimately the emperor, with his mother and staff, went to the east in 231. There actual military command rested in the hands of his generals, but his presence gave additional weight to the empire's policy. Persia's early successes soon faded as Rome's armies brought their power and experience to bear. The result was an acceptance of the status quo rather than a settlement between the parties. This occurred in 233 and Alexander returned to Rome. His presence in the west was required by a German threat, particularly along the Rhine, where the tribes took advantage of the withdrawal of Roman troops for the eastern war.
In 234, Alexander and Julia Mammaea moved to Moguntiacum (Mainz), the capital of Upper Germany. The military situation had improved with the return of troops from the east, and an ambitious offensive campaign was planned, for which a bridge was built across the Rhine. But Alexander preferred to negotiate for peace by buying off the enemy. This policy outraged the soldiers, who mutinied in mid March 235 and killed the emperor and his mother. He had reached the age of 26½ years and had been emperor for almost precisely half his life. He was deified by the senate and received other posthumous honors. With the accession of Maximinus Thrax, the Severan dynasty came to an end.
Death and Evaluation
Tacitus' famous dictum about Galba, that he was properly considered capax imperii, capable of being emperor, until he showed, when emperor, that he was not, could never have been applied to Severus Alexander. A child when chance brought him to the principate, with only two recommendations, that he was different from Elagabalus and that he was part of the Severan family, he proved to be inadequate for the challenges of the time. Military experience was the prime attribute of an emperor now, which Alexander did not have, and that lack ultimately cost him his life. Guided by his mother and employing the services of distinguished men, he returned dignity to the imperial household and to the state. He did the best he could, but that best was not good enough in the early decades of the third century A.D., with the great threats from east and north challenging Rome's primacy and, indeed, existence.
Copyright (C) 2001, Herbert W. Benario. Published on De Imeratoribus Romanis, An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Emperors; http://www.roman-emperors.org/alexsev.htm . Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.Cleisthenes
|
|
|
|
|
|
