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Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Roman Coins| ▸ |Crisis & Decline| ▸ |Gordian III||View Options:   | | | Gordian III was the grandson of Gordian I and nephew of Gordian II. He was proclaimed Caesar shortly before the murder of Balbinus and Pupienus, and he succeeded them. Little is known about his reign. In 242 A.D. he embarked on a campaign against the Persian Kingdom which was so successful the Persians had to evacuate Mesopotamia. However, Gordian III died shortly after, through illness or the machinations of his Praetorian prefect and successor, Philip I. |
Sol Invictus ("Unconquered Sun") was the sun god of the later Roman Empire and a patron of soldiers. In 274 the Roman emperor Aurelian made it an official cult alongside the traditional Roman cults. The god was favored by emperors after Aurelian and appeared on their coins until Constantine. The last inscription referring to Sol Invictus dates to 387 and there were enough devotees in the 5th century that Augustine found it necessary to preach against them. The date 25 December was selected for Christmas to replace the popular Roman festival Dies Natalis Solis Invicti, the "Birthday of the Unconquered Sun."RS111518. Silver denarius, RIC IV 111, RSC IV 39, Hunter III 43, SRCV III 8672, Choice EF, mint luster, well centered and struck, die wear, edge cracks, weight 2.593 g, maximum diameter 20.44 mm, die axis 0o, Rome mint, 1 Jan 241 - Jul 243 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse AETERNITATI AVG, Sol standing slightly right, radiate head left, nude but for chlamys over shoulders and left arm, raising right hand commanding the sun to rise, globe in left hand; ex Numismatik Naumann auction 124 (8 Jan 2023), lot 881 (part of); $150.00 (€151.50)
This coin is dedicated to the goddess Fides for her good quality of preserving the public peace by keeping the army true to its allegiance. Perhaps it worked, or perhaps not. We don't know. Sasanian sources claim that Gordian III died in the Roman defeat at Battle of Misiche near modern Fallujah (Iraq). Roman sources report Gordian was murdered by his frustrated army after the defeat (with the role of Philip unknown).RS111592. Silver antoninianus, RIC IV 1, RSC IV 86, Hunter III 6, SRCV III 8609, Choice VF, well centered, toned, flow lines, weight 3.334 g, maximum diameter 23.7 mm, die axis 0o, Rome mint, 1st issue, 29 Jul 238 - end July 239 A.D.; obverse IMP CAES M ANT GORDIANVS AVG, radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right; reverse FIDES MILITVM, Fides standing slightly left, head left, standard in right hand, transverse scepter in left; ex Numismatik Naumann auction 124 (8 Jan 2023), lot 986 (part of); first specimen of this type handled by FORVM; scarce; $150.00 (€151.50)
Lucifer means lightbringer, from the Latin lux "light" and ferre "to bear or bring." "Lucifer" is found in only one place in the Bible, Isaiah 14:12, but only in the King James and related versions: "How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! The King James Version is based on the Vulgate, the Latin translation of Jerome. Jerome translated the Hebrew helel (bright or brilliant one) as "lucifer," which was a reasonable Latin equivalent. And yet it is this lucifer, the bright one or lightbearer, that became a name for Satan, Lord of Darkness.RS111522. Silver denarius, RIC IV 127 (R), RSC IV 69, Hunter III 47, SRCV III 8673, Choice gVF/EF, lustrous, well centered, flow lines, obv. die wear, sprue remnants, tiny edge cracks, weight 2.727 g, maximum diameter 19.5 mm, die axis 180o, Rome mint, issued for marriage to Tranquillina, 241 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, from behind; reverse DIANA LVCIFERA, Diana standing right, lit long transverse torch right in both hands; ex Numismatik Naumann auction 124 (8 Jan 2023), lot 907 (part of); scarce; $140.00 (€141.40)
Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Nikopolis ad Istrum, Moesia Inferior
Nicopolis ad Istrum was founded by Trajan around 101-106, at the junction of the Iatrus (Yantra) and the Rositsa rivers, in memory of his victory over the Dacians. Its ruins are located at the village of Nikyup, 20 km north of Veliko Tarnovo in northern Bulgaria. The town peaked during the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian, the Antonines and the Severan dynasty. In 447, the Nicopolis was destroyed by Attila's Huns. In the 6th century, it was rebuilt as a powerful fortress enclosing little more than military buildings and churches, following a very common trend for the cities of that century in the Danube area. It was finally destroyed by the Avar invasions at the end of the 6th century.RP110620. Bronze AE 29, HHJ Nikopolis 8.36.5.1, AMNG I/I 2048, RPC VII.2 1265.1, SNG Budapest 482, Varbanov I 4186 var. (rev. legend arrangement), Choice VF, broad flan with full borders and legends, green patina, central depressions, weight 13.556 g, maximum diameter 29.1 mm, die axis 180o, Nicopolis ad Istrum (Nikyup, Bulgaria) mint, consular legate Sabinius Modestus, 241 - 244 A.D.; obverse AVT K M ANTW ΓOPΔIANOC AVΓ (AVΓ ligate), laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from behind; reverse VΠ CAB MOΔECTOY NIKOΠΟΛEITΩN ΠP,O/C/I/C (ΩN & ΠP ligate, last 4 letters in column in left field), Demeter standing facing, head left, grain-ears in right hand, long torch in left hand; $135.00 (€136.35)
Jupiter or Jove, Zeus to the Greeks, was the king of the gods and god of the sky and thunder, and of laws and social order. As the patron deity of ancient Rome, he was the chief god of the Capitoline Triad, with his sister and wife Juno. The father of Mars, he is, therefore, the grandfather of Romulus and Remus, the legendary founders of Rome. Emperors frequently made vows to Jupiter for protection. The Roman's believed as the king of the gods, Jupiter favored emperors and kings, those in positions of authority similar to his own.RS111591. Silver antoninianus, RIC IV 84, RSC IV 109, Hunter III 51, SRCV III 8615, VF, luster, broad flan, flow lines, light tone, rev. struck with a worn die, flan flaw on the obverse, weight 4.749 g, maximum diameter 23.0 mm, die axis 0o, Rome mint, 1 Jan 241 - Jul 243 A.D.; obverse IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, from behind; reverse IOVI STATORI (to Jove who upholds), Jupiter standing facing, head right, long scepter vertical in right hand, thunderbolt in left hand; ex Numismatik Naumann auction 124 (8 Jan 2023), lot 986 (part of); $80.00 (€80.80)
Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Nicaea, Bithynia
The first ecumenical council of the Christian church was held in Nicaea by Constantine in 325.RP97864. Bronze AE 18, BMC Pontus p. 172, 123; Rec Gen II.3 p. 489, 713; RPC VII.2 U19873; Mionnet Sup V 865; SNGvA 653; cf. SNG Cop 526 (no eagle, three with wreath), Choice VF, green patina, slight porosity, light earthen deposits, weight 3.175 g, maximum diameter 18.3 mm, die axis 0o, Nicaea (Iznik, Turkey) mint, 238 - 244 A.D.; obverse M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC AV, radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right, seen from the front; reverse legionary aquila (eagle) between two legionary standards each topped with a wreath, N-IK-AI-E/ΩN in two lines the first above the exergue line divided by the shafts, the last two letters in exergue; $60.00 (€60.60)
Gordian III, 29 July 238 - 25 February 244 A.D., Edessa, Mesopotamia
Tyche (Greek for luck; the Roman equivalent was Fortuna) was the presiding tutelary deity that governed the fortune and prosperity of a city, its destiny. Increasingly during the Hellenistic period, cities had their own specific iconic version of Tyche, wearing a mural crown (a crown like the walls of the city). RP110814. Bronze AE 28, RPC Online VII.2 3427; SNG Cop 220; BMC Arabia p. 111, 128 ff.; Babelon 86; McClean 9553; SNG Hunt 2565, aF, porous, earthen deposits, weight 14.902 g, maximum diameter 27.5 mm, die axis 180o, Mesopotamia, Edessa (Urfa, Sanliurfa, Turkey) mint, 242 - 244 A.D.; obverse AYTOK K M ANT ΓOPΔIANOC CEB, laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right; reverse MHT KOΛ EΔECCΗΝΩN, draped, veiled and turreted bust of Tyche left, altar before her, to left of altar, Marsyas (?) standing right on short column, carrying wineskin over shoulder; $40.00 (€40.40)
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