| Image search results - "Britannicus" |
Aeolidis, Aegaea. AE18. Circa 43-48, 3.28 gm.
Obv BPITANNIKOC KAICAP Bare head of Britannicus r.
Rev : AIGAEWN EPI CALE / OU Zeus standing l., holding eagle and sceptre.
Ref : RPC 2431 (5 ex known)R. Smits
|
|
Caesarea, Paneas. AE23.
Obv : head of Claudius
Rev : His 3 children : Antonia, Britannicus and Octavia
Ref : RPC 4842
Hen-567
This coin type seems questionable to place under the coinage of Agrippa II since the legends do not mention Agrippa and the time of minting does not conform to the other Agrippa II coins. We will notice the absence of Agrippa's name in other issues as well. At the very least, though, it was struck at Caesarea-Paneas, so it is definitely part of the city coinage. It is catalogued in The Numismatic Legacy of the Jews in the city coinage section as #208.R. Smits
|
|
Judaea, Procurators. Antonius Felix. 52-59 CE. in the name of Britannicus Caesar (BPIT).
Æ Prutah (16mm, 2.64 gm.). Jerusalem mint. Dated RY 14 of Claudius (54 CE). Two crossed shields / Palm tree.
Ref : Hendin 1348
Meshorer TJC 340
RPC I 4971
GIC 5626R. Smits
|
|
AE sestertius. Struck under Claudius, circa 50-54 AD, uncertain eastern provincial mint located in the modern-day Balkans.
Obv : TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG F BRITANNICVS, draped bust left.
Rev : - No legend, Mars advancing left, holding spear and shield, SC in fields. 35mm, 19.4g. Extremely Rare.
Ref : BMCRE 226
Cohen 2
RCV 1908, valued at $32,000 in Fine, which is a few multiples greater than any other sestertius issued during the several centuries the denomination was in use.
A large number of the surviving examples of this series (one may even suggest a majority of them), due to their rarity, have been subjected to modern alteration techniques such as smoothing, tooling, and repatination. As such, it's actually pleasant to see a bit of field roughness and a 'plain brown' patina of old copper on this example, evidence that it is just as ugly as it was the day it was last used in circulation back in Ancient Rome.
Britannicus, originally known as Germanicus after Claudius' older brother, was the emperor's original intended heir and natural son. Machinations by Agrippina II eventually saw Britannicus supplanted by her own son Nero, (by Lucius Domitius Ahenobarbus) who took the throne upon Claudius' suspicious death. Britannicus himself died a few years later, reportedly poisoned by his step-brother. The future emperor Titus and Britannicus were close friends, and Titus became quite ill and nearly died after eating from the same poisoned dish that killed Britannicus.R. Smits
|
|
5.5 BritannicusAE Prutah of Judea
RI0014Sosius
|
|
177 - 192, COMMODUS, AE Sestertius, Struck 185 at Rome, alluding to BritanniaObverse: M COMMODVS ANTON AVG PIVS BRIT, laureate head of Commodus facing right.
Reverse: P M TR P X IMP VII COS IIII P P. Draped figure of Victory, seated on pile of shields, facing right, holding a long stylus in her right hand and supporting a shield on her left knee with her left hand; S – C in field; VICT BRIT in exergue.
Diameter: 29.5mm | Weight: 20.12gms | Die Axis: 12h
RIC III: 452 | SRCV: 5826 | Cohen: 946 | BMCRE: 560 | SPINK: 648
SCARCE
This sestertius has a historically important reverse type which refers to Commodus' significant military campaign in Northern Britain.
COMMODUS
Between 180 AD and 184 AD, the Romans were once again at war with the northern tribes in Britain. According to Cassius Dio, “the tribes in that island, crossing the wall that separated them from the Roman legions, proceeded to do much mischief and cut down a general together with his troops”. Though Dio does not make it clear to us today which wall he was writing about, his Roman audience would have known. However, that said, since Southern Scotland was still occupied by the Romans at this time and the Maetae, one of the main tribes involved in the incursion, occupied a hill fort (called Myot Hill today) a few miles north of Antonine's Wall, the wall that seems to best fit his description of separating the tribes from the Roman legions would be the Antonine Wall rather than that of Hadrian. This was the most serious war of Commodus’ reign and when the war was won, Commodus minted coins to celebrate the victory. He also took on the title “Britannicus”, and all his coins after this date feature “Brit” in the legend.
CLICK ON THE IMAGE OF COMMODUS BELOW TO ENLARGE IT
 *Alex
|
|
41Claudius 41-54 AD
Tetradrachm
Alexandria in Egypt
Year 6
Rev: Messalina, 3rd wife of Claudius, holding two small children (Claudia Octavia and Britannicus) in outstretched hand
RPC I 5164 mauseus
|
|
005b. BritannicusBritannicus (son of Claudius) AE17. Ionia, Smyrna
Britannicus (41 - 55 A.D.) was the son of the Roman emperor Claudius and his third wife Messalina. His original name was "Germanicus" but was changed in honor of his father's conquest of Britain in 43 AD.
Nobody is sure why Claudius made Nero his successor and not Britannicus, although the fact that Britannicus may have been Caligula's son is a factor. Britannicus was killed by (partisans of) his step-brother (and brother-in-law) Nero so that Nero could become emperor of Rome.
His sister Octavia is the heroine of the play written at some time after the death of Nero. It's title is titled her name, but its central message is the wrong done to the Claudian house because of the wrong done to its last male member and its last hope.
Britannicus. Before 54 AD. AE 17mm (4.31 g), Minted at Ionia, Smyrna. Bare head right 'ZMYP' below bust / Nike flying right. cf S(GIC) 516. Scarce. Some dirt and patina chipping.
ecoli
|
|
005b. Valeria MessalinaValeria Messalina was the second cousin of Claudius and became his third wife around 39 AD. She had two children, Britannicus and Octavia. She became publicly notorious for her sexual profligacy and was executed in 48 AD. The execution likely had more to do with suspicions that she was plotting against Claudius, as evidenced by her public marriage to another noble while still married to Claudius, than her other behavior.
lawrence c
|
|
005b3. Claudius, Britannicus & Valeria MessalinaClaudius, Messalina and Britannicus
AE
19.6mm, 3.89 g.
Tralles, Lydia.
41-48 AD.
Obv: TI KΛAY KAI CEBAC, confronting busts of Messalina and Claudius.
Rev: KAIΣAΡEΩN BΡETANNIKOΣ, togate figure of Britannicus standing left, holding olive branch and grain ears.
RPC 2654.
A FORUM coin.lawrence c
|
|
005bb. Antonia, daughter of Claudius JUDAEA, Roman Administration. Claudius, with Britannicus, Antonia, and Octavia. AD 41-54. Æ (23mm, 12.02 g, 12h). Caesarea Panias mint. Struck before 49 CE. Laureate head of Claudius left / The children of Claudius: from left to right, Antonia, Britannicus, and Octavia, the two daughters each holding a cornucopia. Meshorer 350; Hendin 1259; Sofaer 83; RPC I 4842. Fair, green and brown patina with touches of red. Rare.ecoli
|
|
005g. BritannicusSon of Claudius by Messalina, born in 41 AD. Replaced as heir by Nero, and poisoned at age 14 after Nero assumed power.lawrence c
|
|
005g01. Britannicus Aeolis, Aegae. AE16. 16.8mm, 2.63 g. Chaleos, magistrate. Obv: BΡITANNIKOC KAICAΡ, bare head right. Rev: AIΓAEΩN EΠI XAΛE-OY, Zeus standing left holding eagle and sceptre. RPC 2431. A FORUM coin.
NOTE: For another possible coin of Britannicus, see 006a10.lawrence c
|
|
006a10. Nero (?) or Britannicus (?)Smyrna, Ionia. AE17. 3.84 g. ΖΜΥ(Ρ), Bust right. ΕΠΙ ΦΙΛΙΣΤΟΥ ΕΙΚΑΔΙΟΣ; Nike, right, with trophy over shoulder. RPC 2476 identifies this as Nero (?). Klose XXXI identifies this as Britannicus.lawrence c
|
|
012p Claudius I. (41-54 A.D.), Judaea, Jerusalem, RPC I 4971, Antonius Felix Procurator, under Claudius, (52-60 A.D.), AE-16(Prutah), BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree, #1012p Claudius I. (41-54 A.D.), Judaea, Jerusalem, RPC I 4971, Antonius Felix Procurator, under Claudius, (52-60 A.D.), AE-16(Prutah), BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree, #1
avers: NEPΩ KΛAY KAICAP, Two crossed shields and spears. (Nero (Caesar)).
reverse: BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree bearing two bunches of dates, L-IΔ, K-AI across the field. (Britannicus (Caesar)).
exergue: L/IΔ//K/AI, diameter: 16,0mm, weight: 2,28g, axes: 0h,
mint: City: Jerusalem, Region: Judaea, Province: Judaea,
date: Dated Year of Claudius (Year 14 = 54 A.D.)
ref: RPC I 4971, Hedin 652,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
015 Britannicus. AE17 4.0gm obv: bare head r.
rev: Nike with trophy
"son of Claudius and Messelina"
hill132
|
|
02 - Personalities of the EmpireCalígula, Claudius, Britannicus , Agrippina jr., Nero, Galba, Otho, Vitellius, Vespasian, Domitila, Titus, Domitia and Julia Titimdelvalle
|
|
11-20 - Smyrna en Ionia - BRITANICO (50 - 54 D.C.)AE15 - 1/2 Assarión (Provincial)
15 mm 4,05 gr 0 hr.
Tiberio Claudio César Británico en latín Tiberius Claudius Caesar Britannicus (12 de febrero de 41 - 11 de febrero de 55) fue un noble romano, nacido del matrimonio entre el emperador Claudio y su tercera esposa, Valeria Mesalina. En el momento de su nacimiento, sólo un mes después del inicio del reinado de Claudio, fue nombrado heredero del Imperio; no obstante hubo tres factores: la condena a muerte de su madre a causa de bigamia, el matrimonio de Claudio con Agripina y la adopción de Nerón, descendiente del recordado Germánico, que provocaron que los ciudadanos romanos no le consideraran como sucesor imperial. Fue asesinado el día anterior a su decimocuarto cumpleaños. (Fuente Wikipedia)
Anv: "ZMYP" debajo - Busto vestido a cabeza desnuda viendo a derecha.
Rev: "ΕΠΙ ΦΙΛΙΣ ΤΟΥ ΕΙΚΑΔΙΟ Σ", (Philistos y Eikadios Magistrados), Nike avanzando a derecha, portando un trofeo sobre su hombro.
Acuñada 50 - 54 D.C.
Ceca: Smyrna en Ionia
Referencias: Vagi #650 - Lingren #562 - KLDSE XXXI #37 pag.223 - SNG Cop #1351 - SNG Von Aulock #7995 - BMC Vol.16 #284 Pag.270 - RPC I #2476 Pag.419mdelvalle
|
|
1ap Claudius41-54
As
Bare head, left, TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP
Libertas, LIBERTAS AVGVSTA SC
RIC 97
According to Suetonius: Claudius was born at Lugdunum (Lyon) on the 1st of August 10BC in the consulship of Iullus Antonius and Fabius Africanus, on the day when the very first altar to Augustus was dedicated there, the child being given the name Tiberius Claudius Drusus. When his elder brother Germanicus was adopted into the Julian family (in 4 AD), he added the name Germanicus also. He lost his father when still an infant (in 9 BC), and throughout his childhood and youth was severely afflicted by various stubborn ailments so that his mind and body lacked vigour, and even when he attained his majority he was not considered capable of a public or private career.
Nevertheless, he applied himself to liberal studies from his earliest youth, and often published examples of his proficiency in each area, though even so he was excluded from public office and failed to inspire any brighter hopes for his future. His mother Antonia the Younger often condemned him as an unfinished freak of Nature, and when accusing someone of stupidity would say: ‘He’s a bigger fool than my son Claudius.’ His grandmother Augusta (Livia) always treated him with utter contempt, and rarely even spoke to him, admonishing him, when she chose to do so, in brief harsh missives, or via her messengers. When his sister Livilla heard the prophecy that he would be Emperor some day, she prayed openly and loudly that Rome might be spared so cruel and unmerited a fate.
Having spent the larger part of his life in such circumstances, he became emperor at the age of fifty (in AD41) by a remarkable stroke of fate. Caligula’s assassins had dispersed the crowd on the pretext that the Emperor wished for solitude, and Claudius, shut out with the rest, retired to a room called the Hermaeum, but shortly afterwards, terrified by news of the murder, crept off to a nearby balcony and hid behind the door-curtains. A Guard, who was wandering about the Palace at random, spotting a pair of feet beneath the curtain where Claudius was cowering, dragged the man out to identify him, and as Claudius fell to the ground in fear, recognised him, and acclaimed him Emperor.
Eutropius summarizes: His reign was of no striking character; he acted, in many respects, with gentleness and moderation, in some with cruelty and folly. He made war upon Britain, which no Roman since Julius Caesar had visited; and, having reduced it through the agency of Cnaeus Sentius and Aulus Plautius, illustrious and noble men, he celebrated a magnificent triumph. Certain islands also, called the Orcades, situated in the ocean, beyond Britain, he added to the Roman empire, and gave his son the name of Britannicus. . . . He lived to the age of sixty-four, and reigned fourteen years; and after his death was consecrated3 and deified.
This was the first "good" coin I ever bought and therefore marks the begiining of an addiction.Blindado
|
|
1ap_2 MessalinaThird wife of Claudius, married in 38 (?)
AE 20, Knossos mint
Bare head of Claudius left, CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERMANICVS
Draped bust of Messalina right, VALERIA MESSALINA [CAPITONE CYTHERONTE IIVIR] or [CYTHERO CAPITONE] (end of legend off flan)
According to Suetonius: [Claudius] was betrothed twice at an early age: to Aemilia Lepida, great-granddaughter of Augustus, and to Livia Medullina, who also had the surname of Camilla and was descended from the ancient family of Camillus the dictator. He put away the former before their marriage, because her parents had offended Augustus; the latter was taken ill and died on the very day which had been set for the wedding. He then married Plautia Urgulanilla, whose father had been honoured with a triumph, and later Aelia Paetina, daughter of an ex-consul. He divorced both these, Paetina for trivial offences, but Urgulanilla because of scandalous lewdness and the suspicion of murder. Then he married Valeria Messalina, daughter of his cousin Messala Barbatus. But when he learned that besides other shameful and wicked deeds she had actually married Gaius Silius, and that a formal contract had been signed in the presence of witnesses, he put her to death and declared before the assembled praetorian guard that inasmuch as his marriages did not turn out well, he would remain a widower, and if he did not keep his word, he would not refuse death at their hands. . . . [He later married Agrippina Jr.]
He had children by three of his wives: by Urgulanilla, Drusus and Claudia; by Paetina, Antonia; by Messalina, Octavia and a son, at first called Germanicus and later Britannicus. . . .
But it is beyond all belief, that at the marriage which Messalina had contracted with her paramour Silius he signed the contract for the dowry with his own hand, being induced to do so on the ground that the marriage was a feigned one, designed to avert and turn upon another a danger which was inferred from certain portents to threaten the emperor himself. . . .
He was so terror-stricken by unfounded reports of conspiracies that he had tried to abdicate. When, as I have mentioned before, a man with a dagger was caught near him as he was sacrificing, he summoned the senate in haste by criers and loudly and tearfully bewailed his lot, saying that there was no safety for him anywhere; and for a long time he would not appear in public. His ardent love for Messalina too was cooled, not so much by her unseemly and insulting conduct, as through fear of danger, since he believed that her paramour Silius aspired to the throne. . . .
Appius Silanus met his downfall. When Messalina and Narcissus had put their heads together to destroy him, they agreed on their parts and the latter rushed into his patron's bed-chamber before daybreak in pretended consternation, declaring that he had dreamed that Appius had made an attack on the emperor. Then Messalina, with assumed surprise, declared that she had had the same dream for several successive nights. A little later, as had been arranged, Appius, who had received orders the day before to come at that time, was reported to be forcing his way in, and as if were proof positive of the truth of the dream, his immediate accusation and death were ordered. . . .
Blindado
|
|
402. MaximianusMarcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus Herculius (c. 250 - July, 310), known in English as Maximian, was Roman Emperor (together with Diocletian) from March 1, 286 to 305.
Born to a poor family near Sirmium (city in Pannonia), Maximian made a career in the army until 285, when the new emperor Diocletian, a friend of his, made him caesar (sub-emperor) and the ruler of the western part of the empire. The next year Maximian became augustus next to Diocletian, and in 293, when Diocletian introduced the Tetrarchy, Constantius Chlorus became Maximian's caesar and married Maximian's daughter Flavia Maximiana Theodora.
During his reign, Maximianus had several military successes, against the Alemanni and Burgundians in northern Germany, against the Carpi on the Danube frontier and against Carausius, who had rebelled in Britain and declared himself emperor there. He also strengthened the frontier defenses in Africa.
On May 1, 305, Diocletian and Maximian retired together; it is clear that this was not a voluntary act of Maximian's, but that he was forced to do so by Diocletian. Galerius and Constantius Chlorus became the new emperors; Flavius Valerius Severus and Maximinus Daia became their caesars. When Constantius died the next year, Maximian's son Maxentius took the western emperorship, and named Maximian to be his augustus. Maximian resolved the conflicts around this emperorship by defeating Severus and Galerius in battle and bringing Constantius' son Constantine on his side by having Constantine marry his daughter Fausta.
However, in 308 Maximian rebelled against his own son, and marched upon Rome, but was beaten and forced to find refuge with Constantine in Gaul. In 310 he declared himself emperor for the third time, but was unable to defend himself against Constantine, who forced him to commit suicide.
For his own and his colleagues' victories, Maximian received the titles Germanicus Maximus V, Sarmaticus Maximus III, Armeniacus Maximus, Medicus Maximus, Adiabenicus Maximus, Persicus Maximus II, Carpicus Maximus, Britannicus Maximus.
Maximianus 286-305, Reform Follis - Siscia Mint
9.16g
Obv: Bust of Maximianus right "IMP MAXIMIANVS PF AVG"
Rev: Moneta standing left holding a scale and cornucopiae "SACRA MONET AVGG E CAESS NOSTR" "SIS" in the exergue.
RIC 134becoli
|
|
403. CarausiusMarcus Aurelius Mausaeus Carausius (d. 293) was a Roman usurper in Britain and northern Gaul (286–293, Carausian Revolt).
Carausius was a man of humble origin, a Menapian from Belgic Gaul who distinguished himself during Maximian's campaign against the Bagaudae rebels in Gaul in 286. As a result, he was appointed to command the Classis Britannica, a fleet based in the English Channel, with the responsibility of eliminating Frankish and Saxon pirates who had been raiding the coast. However, he was suspected of keeping captured treasure for himself, and even of allowing the pirates to carry out raids and enrich themselves before taking action against them, and Maximian ordered his execution. In late 286 or early 287 Carausius learned of this sentence and responded by declaring himself Emperor of Britain and northern Gaul.
He could count on the alliegance of the three legions based in Britain, as well as one in northern Gaul. How he was able to win support from the army when his command had been sea-based is uncertain. The emperor briefly assumed the title Britannicus Maximus in 285, and the British towns of Wroxeter and Caistor by Norwich towns show signs of destruction around this time, so it is possible Carausius won the army's support during military action in Britain shortly before his rebellion. Alternatively, if the accusations of larceny are true, he could perhaps afford to buy their loyalty. He also appears to have appealed to native British dissatisfaction with Roman rule: he issued coins with legends such as Restitutor Britanniae (Restorer of Britain) and Genius Britanniae (Spirit of Britain).
Maximian, busy with wars on the Rhine, was unable to challenge him immediately, but in the Autumn of 288 he began massing troops and ships for an invasion. In 289 an invasion of Britain intended to dislodge him failed badly due to storms, although a naval defeat is also possible. An uneasy peace continued until 293, during which Rome prepared for a second effort to retake the province, while Carausius began to entertain visions of legitimacy and official recognition. He minted his own coins and brought their value in to line with Roman issues as well as acknowledging and honouring Maximian and then Diocletian. Coinage is the main source of information about the rogue emperor; his issues were initially crude but soon became more elaborate and were issued from mints in Londinium, Rotomagnus and a third site, possibly Colonia Claudia Victricensis. A milestone from Carlisle with his name on it suggests that the whole of Roman Britain was in Carausius' grasp.
It has been speculated (namely, by the historian Sheppard Frere) that the rebellion of Carausius endangered Diocletian's vision of a strong, centralized government based on his tetrarchy. In any case, by early 293 Constantius Chlorus had gained control of northern Gaul, including the rebel's stronghold and port of Bononia, on which Carausius was heavily dependent. Constantius built a mole across the harbour mouth to ensure it did not receive maritime aid.
Constantius also regained the allegiance of the rebellious Gallic legion and defeated the Franks of the Rhine mouth who seem to have been working in league with Carausius. Weakened by these setbacks, Carausius was assassinated, possibly at York, by his treasurer, Allectus.
aVF/aVF Carausius Antoninianus / Pax / Green Patina and Nice Style
Attribution: RIC 895
Date: 287-293 AD
Obverse: IMP CARAVSIVS P F AVG, radiate and draped bust right
Reverse: PAX AVG, Pax standing left, holding branch and transverse sceptre.
Size: 20.91 mm
Weight: 3 gramsecoli
|
|
705a, Claudius, 25 January 41 - 13 October 54 A.D.Claudius. 42-43 AD. AE As.
Claudius. 42-43 AD. AE As (29 mm, 10.87 g). Obverse: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG P M TR P IMP P P, bare head right; Reverse: CONSTANTIAE AVGVSTI / S - C, Constantiae in military dress standing left, holding spear; RIC I, 111; aVF. Ex Imperial Coins.
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
CLAUDIUS (41-54 A.D.)
Garrett G. Fagan
Pennsylvania State University
Ti. Claudius Nero Germanicus (b. 10 BC, d. 54 A.D.; emperor, 41-54 A.D.) was the third emperor of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. His reign represents a turning point in the history of the Principate for a number of reasons, not the least for the manner of his accession and the implications it carried for the nature of the office. During his reign he promoted administrators who did not belong to the senatorial or equestrian classes, and was later vilified by authors who did. He followed Caesar in carrying Roman arms across the English Channel into Britain but, unlike his predecessor, he initiated the full-scale annexation of Britain as a province, which remains today the most closely studied corner of the Roman Empire. His relationships with his wives and children provide detailed insights into the perennial difficulties of the succession problem faced by all Roman Emperors. His final settlement in this regard was not lucky: he adopted his fourth wife's son, L. Domitius Ahenobarbus, who was to reign catastrophically as Nero and bring the dynasty to an end. Claudius's reign, therefore, was a mixture of successes and failures that leads into the last phase of the Julio-Claudian line.
Robert Graves' fictional characterization of Claudius as an essentially benign man with a keen intelligence has tended to dominate the wider public's view of this emperor. Close study of the sources, however, reveals a somewhat different kind of man. In addition to his scholarly and cautious nature, he had a cruel streak, as suggested by his addiction to gladiatorial games and his fondness for watching his defeated opponents executed. He conducted closed-door (in camera ) trials of leading citizens that frequently resulted in their ruin or deaths -- an unprecedented and tyrannical pattern of behavior. He had his wife Messalina executed, and he personally presided over a kangaroo court in the Praetorian Camp in which many of her hangers-on lost their lives. He abandoned his own son Britannicus to his fate and favored the advancement of Nero as his successor. While he cannot be blamed for the disastrous way Nero's rule turned out, he must take some responsibility for putting that most unsuitable youth on the throne. At the same time, his reign was marked by some notable successes: the invasion of Britain, stability and good government in the provinces, and successful management of client kingdoms. Claudius, then, is a more enigmatic figure than the other Julio-Claudian emperors: at once careful, intelligent, aware and respectful of tradition, but given to bouts of rage and cruelty, willing to sacrifice precedent to expediency, and utterly ruthless in his treatment of those who crossed him. Augustus's suspicion that there was more to the timid Claudius than met the eye was more than fully borne out by the events of his unexpected reign.
The possibility has to be entertained that Claudius was a far more active participant in his own elevation than traditional accounts let on. There is just reason to suspect that he may even have been involved in planning the murder of Gaius (Caligula). Merely minutes before the assassination of Gaius, Claudius had departed for lunch; this appears altogether too fortuitous. This possibility, however, must remain pure speculation, since the ancient evidence offers nothing explicit in the way of support. On the other hand, we can hardly expect them to, given the later pattern of events. The whole issue of Claudius's possible involvement in the death of Gaius and his own subsequent acclamation by the Praetorian Guard must, therefore, remain moot . . . yet intriguing
Copyright 1998, Garrett G. Fagan.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.
Cleisthenes
|
|
706a, Nero, 13 October 54 - 9 June 68 A.D.6, Nero, 13 October 54 - 9 June 68 A.D. AE setertius, Date: 66 AD; RIC I 516, 36.71 mm; 25.5 grams; aVF. Obverse: IMP NERO CAESAR AVG PONT MAX TR POT PP, Laureate bust right; Reverse: S C, ROMA, Roma seated left, exceptional portrait and full obverse legends. Ex Ancient Imports.
NERO (54-68 A.D.)
It is difficult for the modern student of history to realize just how popular Nero actually was, at least at the beginning of his reign. Rome looked upon her new Emperor with hope. He was the student of Seneca, and he had a sensitive nature. He loved art, music, literature, and theatre. He was also devoted to horses and horse racing—a devotion shared by many of his subjects. The plebs loved their new Emperor. As Professor of Classics Judith P. Hallett (University of Maryland, College Park) says, “It is not clear to me that Nero ever changed or that Nero ever grew-up, and that was both his strength and his weakness. Nero was an extraordinarily popular Emperor: he was like Elvis” (The Roman Empire in the First Century, III. Dir. Margaret Koval and Lyn Goldfarb. 2001. DVD. PBS/Warner Bros. 2003).
De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families
Herbert W. Benario
Emory University
Introduction and Sources
The five Julio-Claudian emperors are very different one from the other. Augustus dominates in prestige and achievement from the enormous impact he had upon the Roman state and his long service to Rome, during which he attained unrivaled auctoritas. Tiberius was clearly the only possible successor when Augustus died in AD 14, but, upon his death twenty-three years later, the next three were a peculiar mix of viciousness, arrogance, and inexperience. Gaius, better known as Caligula, is generally styled a monster, whose brief tenure did Rome no service. His successor Claudius, his uncle, was a capable man who served Rome well, but was condemned for being subject to his wives and freedmen. The last of the dynasty, Nero, reigned more than three times as long as Gaius, and the damage for which he was responsible to the state was correspondingly greater. An emperor who is well described by statements such as these, "But above all he was carried away by a craze for popularity and he was jealous of all who in any way stirred the feeling of the mob." and "What an artist the world is losing!" and who is above all remembered for crimes against his mother and the Christians was indeed a sad falling-off from the levels of Augustus and Tiberius. Few will argue that Nero does not rank as one of the worst emperors of all.
The prime sources for Nero's life and reign are Tacitus' Annales 12-16, Suetonius' Life of Nero, and Dio Cassius' Roman History 61-63, written in the early third century. Additional valuable material comes from inscriptions, coinage, papyri, and archaeology.
Early Life
He was born on December 15, 37, at Antium, the son of Cnaeus Domitius Ahenobarbusand Agrippina. Domitius was a member of an ancient noble family, consul in 32; Agrippina was the daughter of the popular Germanicus, who had died in 19, and Agrippina, daughter of Agrippa, Augustus' closest associate, and Julia, the emperor's daughter, and thus in direct descent from the first princeps. When the child was born, his uncle Gaius had only recently become emperor. The relationship between mother and uncle was difficult, and Agrippina suffered occasional humiliation. But the family survived the short reign of the "crazy" emperor, and when he was assassinated, it chanced that Agrippina's uncle, Claudius, was the chosen of the praetorian guard, although there may have been a conspiracy to accomplish this.
Ahenobarbus had died in 40, so the son was now the responsibility of Agrippina alone. She lived as a private citizen for much of the decade, until the death of Messalina, the emperor's wife, in 48 made competition among several likely candidates to become the new empress inevitable. Although Roman law forbade marriage between uncle and niece, an eloquent speech in the senate by Lucius Vitellius, Claudius' closest advisor in the senatorial order, persuaded his audience that the public good required their union. The marriage took place in 49, and soon thereafter the philosopher Seneca [[PIR2 A617]] was recalled from exile to become the young Domitius' tutor, a relationship which endured for some dozen years.
His advance was thereafter rapid. He was adopted by Claudius the following year and took the name Tiberius Claudius Nero Caesar or Nero Claudius Caesar Drusus Germanicus, was preferred to Claudius' natural son, Britannicus, who was about three years younger, was betrothed to the emperor's daughter Octavia, and was, in the eyes of the people, the clear successor to the emperor. In 54, Claudius died, having eaten some poisoned mushrooms, responsibility for which was believed to be Agrippina's, and the young Nero, not yet seventeen years old, was hailed on October 13 as emperor by the praetorian guard.
The First Years of Rule
The first five years of Nero's rule are customarily called the quinquennium, a period of good government under the influence, not always coinciding, of three people, his mother, Seneca, and Sextus Afranius Burrus, the praetorian prefect. The latter two were allies in their "education" of the emperor. Seneca continued his philosophical and rhetorical training, Burrus was more involved in advising on the actualities of government. They often combined their influence against Agrippina, who, having made her son emperor, never let him forget the debt he owed his mother, until finally, and fatally, he moved against her.
Nero's betrothal to Octavia was a significant step in his ultimate accession to the throne, as it were, but she was too quiet, too shy, too modest for his taste. He was early attracted to Poppaea Sabina, the wife of Otho, and she continually goaded him to break from Octavia and to show himself an adult by opposing his mother. In his private life, Nero honed the musical and artistic tastes which were his chief interest, but, at this stage, they were kept private, at the instigation of Seneca and Burrus.
As the year 59 began, Nero had just celebrated his twenty-first birthday and now felt the need to employ the powers which he possessed as emperor as he wished, without the limits imposed by others. Poppaea's urgings had their effect, first of all, at the very onset of the year, with Nero's murder of his mother in the Bay of Naples.
Agrippina had tried desperately to retain her influence with her son, going so far as to have intercourse with him. But the break between them proved irrevocable, and Nero undertook various devices to eliminate his mother without the appearance of guilt on his part. The choice was a splendid vessel which would collapse while she was on board. As this happened, she swam ashore and, when her attendant, having cried out that she was Agrippina, was clubbed to death, Agrippina knew what was going on. She sent Nero a message that she was well; his response was to send a detachment of sailors to finish the job. When she was struck across the head, she bared her womb and said, "Strike here, Anicetus, strike here, for this bore Nero," and she was brutally murdered.
Nero was petrified with fear when he learned that the deed had been done, yet his popularity with the plebs of Rome was not impaired. This matricide, however, proved a turning point in his life and principate. It appeared that all shackles were now removed. The influence of Seneca and Burrus began to wane, and when Burrus died in 62, Seneca realized that his powers of persuasion were at an end and soon went into retirement. Britannicus had died as early as 55; now Octavia was to follow, and Nero became free to marry Poppaea. It may be that it had been Burrus rather than Agrippina who had continually urged that Nero's position depended in large part upon his marriage to Octavia. Burrus' successor as commander of the praetorian guard, although now with a colleague, was Ofonius Tigellinus, quite the opposite of Burrus in character and outlook. Tigellinus became Nero's "evil twin," urging and assisting in the performance of crimes and the satisfaction of lusts.
Administrative and Foreign Policy
With Seneca and Burrus in charge of administration at home, the first half-dozen years of Nero's principate ran smoothly. He himself devoted his attention to his artistic, literary, and physical bents, with music, poetry, and chariot racing to the fore. But his advisors were able to keep these performances and displays private, with small, select audiences on hand. Yet there was a gradual trend toward public performance, with the establishment of games. Further, he spent many nights roaming the city in disguise, with numerous companions, who terrorized the streets and attacked individuals. Those who dared to defend themselves often faced death afterward, because they had shown disrespect for the emperor. The die was being cast for the last phases of Nero's reign.
The Great Fire at Rome and The Punishment
of the Christians
The year 64 was the most significant of Nero's principate up to this point. His mother and wife were dead, as was Burrus, and Seneca, unable to maintain his influence over Nero without his colleague's support, had withdrawn into private life. The abysmal Tigellinus was now the foremost advisor of the still young emperor, a man whose origin was from the lowest levels of society and who can accurately be described as criminal in outlook and action. Yet Nero must have considered that he was happier than he had ever been in his life. Those who had constrained his enjoyment of his (seemingly) limitless power were gone, he was married to Poppaea, a woman with all advantages save for a bad character the empire was essentially at peace, and the people of Rome enjoyed a full measure of panem et circenses. But then occurred one of the greatest disasters that the city of Rome, in its long history, had ever endured.
The fire began in the southeastern angle of the Circus Maximus, spreading through the shops which clustered there, and raged for the better part of a week. There was brief success in controlling the blaze, but then it burst forth once more, so that many people claimed that the fires were deliberately set. After about a fortnight, the fire burned itself out, having consumed ten of the fourteen Augustan regions into which the city had been divided.
Nero was in Antium through much of the disaster, but his efforts at relief were substantial. Yet many believed that he had been responsible, so that he could perform his own work comparing the current fate of Rome to the downfall of Troy. All his efforts to assist the stricken city could not remove the suspicion that "the emperor had fiddled while Rome burned." He lost favor even among the plebs who had been enthusiastic supporters, particularly when his plans for the rebuilding of the city revealed that a very large part of the center was to become his new home.
As his popularity waned, Nero and Tigellinus realized that individuals were needed who could be charged with the disaster. It so happened that there was such a group ready at hand, Christians, who had made themselves unpopular because of their refusal to worship the emperor, their way of life, and their secret meetings. Further, at this time two of their most significant "teachers" were in Rome, Peter and Paul. They were ideal scapegoats, individuals whom most Romans loathed, and who had continually sung of the forthcoming end of the world.
Their destruction was planned with the utmost precision and cruelty, for the entertainment of the populace. The venue was Nero's circus near the Mons Vaticanus. Christians were exposed to wild animals and were set ablaze, smeared with pitch, to illuminate the night. The executions were so grisly that even the populace displayed sympathy for the victims. Separately, Peter was crucified upside down on the Vatican hill and Paul was beheaded along the Via Ostiensis. But Nero's attempt, and hope, to shift all suspicion of arson to others failed. His popularity even among the lower classes was irrevocably impaired.
[For a detailed and interesting discussion of Nero’s reign please see http://www.roman-emperors.org/nero.htm]
The End - Nero's Death and its Aftermath
Nero's and Tigellinus' response to the conspiracy was immediate and long-lasting. The senatorial order was decimated, as one leading member after another was put to death or compelled to commit suicide. The year 66 saw the suicides of perhaps the most distinguished victims of the "reign of terror," Caius Petronius and Thrasea Paetus. Petronius, long a favorite of Nero because of his aesthetic taste, had been an able public servant before he turned to a life of ease and indolence. He was recognized as the arbiter elegantiae of Nero's circle, and may be the author of the Satyricon. At his death, he left for Nero a document which itemized many of the latter's crimes. Thrasea, a staunch Stoic who had been for some years an outspoken opponent of Nero's policies, committed suicide in the Socratic manner. This scene is the last episode in the surviving books of Tacitus' Annals.
In the year 68, revolt began in the provinces. . . the end of Nero's reign became inevitable. Galba claimed the throne and began his march from Spain. Nero panicked and was rapidly abandoned by his supporters. He finally committed suicide with assistance, on June 9, 68, and his body was tended and buried by three women who had been close to him in his younger days, chief of whom was Acte. His death scene is marked above all by the statement, "Qualis artifex pereo," (What an artist dies in me.) Even at the end he was more concerned with his private life than with the affairs of state.
The aftermath of Nero's death was cataclysmic. Galba was the first of four emperors who revealed the new secret of empire, that an emperor could be made elsewhere than in Rome. Civil war ensued, which was only ended by the victory of the fourth claimant, Vespasian, who established the brief dynasty of the Flavians. The dynasty of the Julio-Claudians was at an end.
Nero's popularity among the lower classes remained even after his death.
. . . .
It is not excessive to say that he was one of the worst of Rome's emperors in the first two centuries and more of the empire. Whatever talents he had, whatever good he may have done, all is overwhelmed by three events, the murder of his mother, the fire at Rome, and his savage treatment of the Christians.
Precisely these qualities are the reasons that he has remained so well known and has been the subject of many writers and opera composers in modern times. These works of fiction particularly merit mention: Henryk Sienkiewicz's Quo Vadis, one of the finest works of the 1907 Nobel Laureate in Literature, and John Hersey's The Conspiracy. Nero unquestionably will always be with us.
Copyright (C) 2006, Herbert W. Benario.
Published: De Imperatoribus Romanis: An Online Encyclopedia of Roman Rulers and their Families http://www.roman-emperors.org/startup.htm. Used by permission.
Edited by J. P. Fitzgerald, Jr.
Cleisthenes
|
|
Aiolis, Aigai, Claudius, RPC 2429Claudius, AD 41-54
AE 20, 5.04g
struck under magistrate Apollodoros Po.
obv. TI KLAVDIOC KAICAR CEBACTOC
Head, laureate, r.
re. EPI APOLLODWROV PO VIOV XALEOV TO B
cult-statue of Apollo Chresterios r.
RPC 2429
rare, F+
At the time of Britannicus there was a magistrate Chaleos. Apollodoros seems to be his son. Aigai was the centre of the worshipping of Apollo Chresterios, meaning the foresayer, the prophet. It is known from an inscription that the inhabitants of Istros about 250 BC have sent a delegation to Aigai asking wether the oracle would tolerate the introducing of Serapis to Istros.Jochen
|
|
BCC J47 Antonius Felix ClaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of
Claudius). Inscription around
two crossed shields and spears.
Rev: [BPIT] (Britannicus, second son
of Claudius). Inscription above six-
branched palm tree bearing dates.
Across field, L-IΔ KAI (year 14 of Caesar).
Struck in 54 CE. 15.5mm. 1.49gm. Axis:0
Hendin III 652 (1348).
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1975
J. Berlin Caesarea Collection
Struck on a very small flan with
undersized devices and almost
illegible inscriptions.v-drome
|
|
BCC J62 Antonius Felix under ClaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of
Claudius). Inscription around
two crossed shields and spears.
Rev: [BPIT] (Britannicus, second son
of Claudius). Inscription above six-
branched palm tree bearing dates.
Across field, L-IΔ KAI (year 14 of Caesar).
Struck in 54 CE.
16mm. 2.11gm. Axis:~30
Hendin III 652 (1348).
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1971
J. Berlin Caesarea Collectionv-drome
|
|
BCC J63 Antonius Felix under ClaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of
Claudius). Inscription around
two crossed shields and spears.
Rev: [BPIT] (Britannicus, second son
of Claudius). Inscription above six-
branched palm tree bearing dates.
Across field, L-IΔ KAI (year 14 of Caesar).
Struck in 54 CE.
16.5mm. 2.09gm. Axis:~180
Hendin III 652 (1348).
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1976
J. Berlin Caesarea Collection
(click for larger pic)v-drome
|
|
BCC J64 Antonius Felix under ClaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of
Claudius). Inscription around
two crossed shields and spears.
Rev: [BPIT] (Britannicus, second son
of Claudius). Inscription above six-
branched palm tree bearing dates.
Across field, L-IΔ KAI (year 14 of Caesar).
Struck in 54 CE.
16.5mm. 1.94gm. Axis:~90
Hendin III 652 (1348).
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1977
J. Berlin Caesarea Collectionv-drome
|
|
BCC J65 Antonius Felix Procurator under CaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of Claudius).
Inscription around two crossed shields
and spears.
Rev: BPIT (Britannicus, second son of
Claudius). Inscription above six-branched
palm tree bearing dates. Across field, L-IΔ
KAI (year 14 of Caesar). Struck in 54 CE.
16.5mm. 1.64gm. Axis:~180
Possible imitative issue overstruck on a
defective flan. Hendin 1348.
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1972
J. Berlin Caesarea Collection
(click for larger pic)v-drome
|
|
BCC J66 Antonius Felix Procurator under ClaudiusJudaea AE Prutah
Antonius Felix, procurator
under Claudius 52-59 C.E.
Obv: NEPW KΛAY KAICAP
(Nero Claudius Caesar, son of Claudius).
Inscription around two crossed shields
and spears.
Rev: BPIT (Britannicus, second son of
Claudius). Inscription above six-branched
palm tree bearing dates. Across field, L-IΔ KAI
(year 14 of Caesar = 54 CE.)
16mm. 2.32gm. Axis:~300
Hendin III 652 (1348).
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1970's
J. Berlin Caesarea Collectionv-drome
|
|
BCC RGP4 Britannicus Caesarea PaneasRoman Provincial
Britannicus 50-54 CE
Son of Claudius
Obv:BRITANNICVS.AVG.F.
Bare headed bust of child
Rev:S C within garland/wreath
AE15mm. 3.9gm. Axis:0
Hendin GBC III 569
Exceedingly Rare
Surface find Caesarea Maritima, 1972
J. Berlin Caesarea Collectionv-drome
|
|
Britannicus - RPC 2476My only provincial coin (so far...)Limes
|
|
Britannicus SestertiusObv: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG F BRITANNICVS - Bare headed and draped bust left
Rev. S C - Mars advancing left, holding spear and shield.
Year: 50-54 AD
Material: AE
Weight: 24.05g
Ref: Cohen 2
Notes: Extremely rare; authenticity verified by Fitzwilliam Museum (Cambridge) experts.oa
|
|
Britannicus-NIkeAE 16, Ionia, Smyrna mint, 50-54 A.D
Obverse: ZMV, Bare head right
Reverse, EPI FILISTOU EIKADI / OS , (authorities Philistos and Eikadios), Nike flying right carrying trophy over shoulder
S 516, RPC 2476
16mm, 3.9gmJerome Holderman
|
|
Britannicus. 50-54 AD. Roman Empire. Britannicus. 50-54 AD. AE17 (3.05 gm, 17.7mm, 12h) of Pergamon. Bare head right of Brittanicus, son of Claudius and Valeria Messalina. BPITANNIKOC KAICAP. / Bare head right. of Nero as Caesar. NEPΩN, KAICAP. VF. Imhoof-Blumer Kleinasiatische Münzen p. 31 #3 RPC 2371; Vagi 649.Anaximander
|
|
Caracalla RIC IV#224Caracalla. AD 198-217. AR Denarius (3,48g). Rome mint. Struck AD 212-213.
Ob..ANTONINVS PIVS AVG BRIT, Laureate bearded head right.
Rev..MONETA AVG, Moneta draped standing left, holding scales and cornucopia.
RIC IV 224; RSC 165.
Obverse Legend..
ANTONINVS PIVS - The Roman name he used
AVG - Augustus (Emperor).
BRIT - Britannicus (Conqueror of the Britains).
Reverse legend..
MONETA AVG - Money of the Emperor.
Note...Born in Lugdunum (Lyon), Gaul (France) on the 4th April 188AD to his father, the future Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211) and his mother Julia Domna (193-211). His birth name was Lucius Septimius Bassianus and at the age of 7 was renamed Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, but is better known by his nickname of 'Caracalla' which derived from a Gallic hooded tunic he wore probably during the Rhine and Danube campaigns. He reigned from 198 - 217, Co-ruled with his father from 198-211 and with his younger brother Geta from 209-211. His father died in early February 211 leaving Caracalla and his brother Geta to co-rule. This didn't work out well and in late December of the same year Caracalla had his brother Geta murdered...Caracalla continued to rule for another 6 years until in April 217 whilst travelling to Carrhae in modern Turkey, he was stabbed to death by an irrate soldier named Justin Martialis. This was probably incited by Macrinus who held the position of Praetorian Prefect and would become the next Emperor.
Paul R3
|
|
CILICIA, Anazarbus; GermanicusCILICIA, Anazarbus. Germanicus. Caesar, 15 BC-AD 19. Æ Diassarion (29mm, 16.81 g, 12h). Dated CY 67 (AD 48/9). Bare head right / Laureate head of Zeus Olybris right before mountain with acropolis; ETOYΣ [ZΞ] (date) in exergue. Ziegler 35 (O1/R1); SNG BN –; SNG Levante 1366; RPC II 4060 (same obv. die as illustration). VF, green and red-brown patina, surfaces a little rough. Good portrait and interesting reverse design.
Ex Classical Numismatic Group Electronic Auction 269 (30 November 2011), lot 257; Hirsch 251 (9 May 2007), lot 861.
RPC gives three possible identifications for the figure on the obverse: Claudius, Britannicus, or Germanicus. Britannicus is the most easily dismissable attribution; as RPC notes (p. 595) the nomenclature would be unlikely for such a date. Levante and Ziegler describe the figure as Claudius (the latter with a question mark), but the varying portrait style and the obverse legend “TIBERIOC KΛAΔIOC KAICAP” on a parellel issue of the same year casts serious doubt. Germanicus then seems the most likely of the three. Ex - CNG
ecoli
|
|
Claudius & Antonia TetradrachmTI KΛAY∆I KAIΣ ΣEBA ΓEPMANI AYTOKP
laureate head right, date LB (year 2) before
ANTΩNIA ΣEBAΣTH
bust of Antonia right, hair in queue
29 Sep 41 - 28 Sep 42 A.D.
Alexandria mint
11.054g, 23.2mm, die axis 0o,
RPC 5117; Geissen 62; Milne 61; BMC Alexandria p. 9, 65; Dattari 114; SNG Milan 620, SNG Cop 57; Sommer 12.3, Emmett 73
Scarce
Ex-Forum
Antonia was the youngest daughter of Mark Antony and Octavia. She was a niece of the Emperor Augustus, sister-in-law of the Emperor Tiberius, paternal grandmother of the Emperor Caligula and Empress Agrippina the Younger, mother of the Emperor Claudius, and both maternal great-grandmother and paternal great-aunt of the Emperor Nero. She was additionally the maternal great-aunt of the Empress Valeria Messalina and Faustus Cornelius Sulla Felix, and paternal grandmother of Claudia Antonia, Claudia Octavia, and Britannicus.Jay GT4
|
|
Claudius and Britannicus - ThessalonicaAE 23
53-54 AD
bare head of Claudius left
countermark
TI KΛAYΔIOC KAICAP CΕΒACTOC
draped bust of Britanniccus left
BPETANNIKOC ΘECCAΛONI
RPC 1588
7,22g 23mm
tooled haircutJ. B.
|
|
|
Commodus- Denarius VictoriaCommodus, marts eller april 177 - 31 December 192
Obverse:
Commodus with laurete head right
M COMM ANT FEL AVG P BRIT
M: Marcus
COMM: Commodus
ANT: Antoninus, Antoninus
FEL: Happy
AVG: Augustus, emperor
P: Pius, pious
BRIT: Britannicus
Reverse:
SAEC FEL PM TR P XI IMP VII COS V PP
SAEC: Happy age, refers to the secular games
FEL: Felix, happy
PM: Pontifix Maximus, literally ”head priest”, the ruler´s title as supreme head of the roman religion.
TRP: Tribunicia Potestas, The Tribunician power, the emperor as civil head of the state.
XI: 11th time
IMP: Imperator, head of the army
VII: 7 th time
COS: Consul,
V: 5 th time
PP: Pater Patria, father of his country
Victoria standing right, foot on helmet, inscribing VO DE (VOTA DECENNALES, every 10 year) on a shield set on upon a palme.
Domination: Denarius, silver, size 18 mm
Mint: Rome, struck 183-184 A.D. RIC 101, type B.
TRP = This is short for tribunicia potestate - "with the power of the Tribune of the Plebs." The government of Rome was split into the Patricians (who were Senators) and the Plebians. Nine Tribunes of the Plebs were elected by both Plebs and Patricians every year to be in charge of the Plebian assembly. These Tribunes could not be injured because it could be punishable by death. They had veto powers, and they could prevent a law from being passed or an election. An emperor cannot technically rule on the Plebian assembly since he is a Patrician, but by taking the title he could be free from injury. On a coin, if this symbol is followed by a number, it depicts how many times he has been elected Tribune of the Plebs.
Peter Wissing
|
|
Commodus- JupiterCommodus, March or April 177 - 31 Dec 192 A.D.
Obverse:
Laureate head right
M COMMODVS ANT P FELIX AVG BRIT
M: Marcus
COMMODVS: Commodus
ANT: Antoninus, Antoninus
PFELIX: Pius Felix,
AVG: Augustus,
BRIT: Britannicus
Reverse:
IOVI IVVENI P M TR P XIIII IMP VIII COS V P P S—C
IOVI: Jupiter
IVVENI: Young
P M: Pontifix Maximus, ypperste præst
TRP: Tribunicia Potestas, folkets tribunat
XIIII: 14
IMP: Imperator,
VIII: 8
COS: Consul,
V:
PP: Pater Patria,
S—C: Senatus Consulto
Showing: Jupiter with his head left, naked except for cloak hanging from shoulder: Jupiter holding thunderbolt and sceptre, and there is a eagle at left foot. There is an S at left and an C right for Jupiter.
Domination: Sestertius, Orichalcum, size 30 mm
Mint: Rome
TRP = This is short for tribunicia potestate - "with the power of the Tribune of the Plebs." The government of Rome was split into the Patricians (who were Senators) and the Plebians. Nine Tribunes of the Plebs were elected by both Plebs and Patricians every year to be in charge of the Plebian assembly. These Tribunes could not be injured because it could be punishable by death. They had veto powers, and they could prevent a law from being passed or an election. An emperor cannot technically rule on the Plebian assembly since he is a Patrician, but by taking the title he could be free from injury. On a coin, if this symbol is followed by a number, it depicts how many times he has been elected Tribune of the Plebs.Peter Wissing
|
|
HADRIANVS BRITANNICUSSestertius of Hadrian, AD 122. EXERC BRITANNICVS SC ("For the army of Britain, by order of the Senate") RIC 913.
The reverse shows Hadrian addressing the troops in England, standing on a low plinth, clearly showing the Roman soldiers with their standards.
Coin currently in the British Museum Department of Coins and Medals (gallery 49, case 14).
Obv. HADRIANVS AVG COS 111 PP ("Hadrian Augustus, three times consul, father of his country")
|
|
Hendin 1348 Antonius Felix, Crossed SheildsAntonius Felix. AE Prutah. 54 A.D.. Caesarea Mint. Obverse: (Nero Claudius Caesar), two oblong shields and spears crossed. Reverse: (Britannicus) above, (year 14 of Caesar), six-branched palm tree bearing two bunches of dates. Ex Amphora.
Acts 24:24. Paul appeared before Felix during his imprisonment in Caesarea.Lucas H
|
|
HorsesTwo horses on a provincial coin of Gordian III from Seleuceia ad Calycadnum in Cilicia showing Nike in a biga, .
It's one of my favourite coins. It's rare, but not extremely so - there is a similar coin in SNG France, Bibliotheque Nationale, 1031 (variant) - and it's not in amazingly good condition, and the proportions of Nike and the horses are a bit unusual, but it's a great design, full of movement and filling out the coin in a pleasing manner, and the little horses look as though they're having fun (in fact, I call it my "happy horses coin"). It cheers me up just to look at it!
- BritannicusBritannicus
|
|
Ionia, Smyrna, Britannicus, RPC 2476Britannicus, son of Claudius, killed AD 55 by Nero
AE 16, 3.89g
struck AD 50-54 under the magistrates Philistos (stephanophoros) and Eikadios (strategos)
obv. Youthful bust of Britannicus, draped, bare-headed, r.
Below the neck ZMY
rev. EPI FILICTOV - EIKADIO / S
Nike, flying r., holding tropaion over l. shoulder
RPC 2476 (Nero as Caesar); BMC 283 (Britannicus); Klose 233, 37 (Britannicus)
very rare, VF (one of the nicest specimens)
It is discussed wether the obv. shows Britannicus or Nero. Britannicus was the son of Claudius with Messalina. Originally his name was Germanicus. After the victory of his father over Britannia he was renamed Britannicus. He was poisoned AD 55 in order of Nero.
Jochen
|
|
IONIA, Smyrna. Britannicus(?). AD 41-55. Æ (16mm, 3.96 g, 12h). Philistos and Eikadios, magistrates. Struck circa AD 50-54. IONIA, Smyrna. Britannicus(?). AD 41-55. Æ (16mm, 3.96 g, 12h). Philistos and Eikadios, magistrates. Struck circa AD 50-54. Bareheaded and draped bust right / Nike advancing right, carrying trophy over shoulder. Klose Type XXXI; RPC I 2476 (Nero as Caesar, under Claudius); SNG Copenhagen 1351; SNG von Aulock 7995. Joe Geranio Collection.Joe Geranio
|
|
Ionia, Smyrna; Nike flying right carrying trophy over shoulderBritannicus, son of Claudius, 50 - 54 A.D., Smyrna, Ionia. Bronze AE 17, SGICV 516, RPC I 2476, Fair, nice patina, Ionia, Smyrna mint, 2.165g, 16.7mm, 50 - 54 A.D.; obverse bare head right, reverse “ΕΠΙ ΦΙΛΙΣΤΟΥ ΕΙΚΑΔΙ/ΟΣ ”, (authorities Philistos and Eikadios), Nike flying right carrying trophy over shoulder. Most authorities attribute the obverse bust to Britannicus but RPC identifies it as Nero. Ex FORVM, photo credit FORVMPodiceps
|
|
Isis on an Alexandrian diobol of GalbaAlexandria, AE diobol of Galba, year 2 (= 68-69 AD), Isis bust r.
Emmett 179(2), Geissen 241-242, BMC 202-203.
Not a tremendously rare coin, or in spectacularly good condition, but a portrait of a real, strong-minded young person, who seems to say "hello" to me every time I hold the coin.
- BritannicusBritannicus
|
|
IV/a-BRITANNICUS(?) - AE17 SMYRNAAv) ZMYP
Bare head of Britannicus (?) right
Rv) EΠI ΦIΛIΣTOY EIKAΔIOΣ
Nike with trophaion over left shoulder walks right
Weight:: 3,8g; Ø: 17mm; Reference:: SEAR/516 Mint: IONIA // SMYRNA
|
|
Judaea, Under Claudius I, Nero Claudius Caesar, Britannicus by Antonius Felix (54 AD), AE Prutah, Year 14Roman Provincial, Judaea, Under Claudius I, Nero Claudius Caesar, Britannicus by Antonius Felix (54 AD), AE Prutah, Year 14
Obverse: NƐPW KΛAY KAICAP, Two shields, two spears crossed, within dotted circle border, off-center.
Reverse: BPIT, L-[IΔ], K[AI], Six branched palm tree bearing two bunches of dates, within dotted circle border.
Reference: Hendin 1348, RPC I 4971, TJC 340, GBC 1348, Meshorer 34o
Ex: VCoins - Holyland Ancient Coin Corporation - Musa Ali
Gil-galad
|
|
Judaea, Under Claudius I, Nero Claudius Caesar, Britannicus by Antonius Felix (54 AD), AE Prutah, Year 14Roman Provincial, Judaea, Under Claudius I, Nero Claudius Caesar, Britannicus by Antonius Felix (54 AD), AE Prutah, Year 14
Obverse: NƐPW KΛAY KAICAP, Two shields, two spears crossed, within dotted circle border, off-center.
Reverse: BPIT, L-[IΔ], K[AI], Six branched palm tree bearing two bunches of dates, within dotted circle border.
Reference: Hendin 1348, RPC I 4971, TJC 340, GBC 1348, Meshorer 34o
Ex: VCoins - Holyland Ancient Coin Corporation - Musa Ali
Gil-galad
|
|
Judaea. Antonius Felix (52-59 A.D.), procurator under ClaudiusHendin 652 Meshorer TJC 340, Meshorer AJC II, Supp. V, 29.
AE Prutah, year 14 of Claudius (54 A.D.) 16-18 mm.
Obv: Two oblong shields and two spears, crossed, surrounded by NEPW KΛΑY KAICAP (Nero Claudius Caesar [the son of Claudius]).
Rev: Palm tree bearing two bunches of dates, BPIT (Britannicus [the younger son of Claudius]) above, flanked by LIΔ (with the IΔ looking like a K)—AI (date).Stkp
|
|
Lydia, Tralleis. Æ18. Claudius, Messalina & Britannicus. Æ18 Trichalkon of Tralleis in Lydia, A.D. 43-48.
Obv: TI KΛAY KAI CEBAC. Confronted busts of Messalina and Claudius.
Rev: BRETANNIKOΣ KAIΣAREΩN. Britannicus, togate, standing almost to front, head left, holding grain ears.
18mm. 5.40gm.
RPC 2654.
ancientone
|
|
MessalinaClaudius & Valeria Messalina, Tetradrachm
Struck at Alexandria in Egypt in regnal year 1 (A.D. 41/2).
Obv: TI KΛAΩΔI KAIΣ ΣEBA ΓEPMANI AYTOKP, laureate head of Claudius right,
Rev: MEΣΣAΛI-NA KAIΣ ΣEBAΣ, Messalina standing facing, head left, leaning on draped column,
holding figures of two children (Octavia and Britannicus) in extended right hand and cradling two grain ears in left arm.
25 mm 13.21gm.
RPC I 5113. Marsman
|
|
Messalina (Valeria), third wife of Claudius. Augusta, 41-48 CE.Alexandria, Egypt.
Billon Tetradrachm (24 mm, 10.32 g).
Year 6=AD 45/46.
Obv: TI KLAUDI KAIS SEBA GERMANI AUTOKR, Laureate head of Claudius, right, Ls (=year 6) before.
Rev: MESSALINA KAIS SEBAS, Messalina standing, left, veiled and wearing long chiton and peplos, resting l. elbow on column, holding in the r. hand two figures (their children, Octavia and Britannicus), on her l. arm are two stalks of corn; in lower l. field, a lituus. Sear 1869; SGI 495; RPC 5164; BMCG 75; Cologne 88; Milne 106.
|
|
R., Judaea, Jerusalem, 012p Claudius I. (41-54 A.D.), RPC I 4971, Antonius Felix Procurator, under Claudius, (52-60 A.D.), AE-16(Prutah), BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree, #1R., Judaea, Jerusalem, 012p Claudius I. (41-54 A.D.), RPC I 4971, Antonius Felix Procurator, under Claudius, (52-60 A.D.), AE-16(Prutah), BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree, #1
avers: NEPΩ KΛAY KAICAP, Two crossed shields and spears. (Nero (Caesar)).
reverse: BRIT/K-AI, Six branched palm tree bearing two bunches of dates, L-IΔ, K-AI across the field. (Britannicus (Caesar)).
exergue: L/IΔ//K/AI, diameter: 16,0mm, weight: 2,28g, axes: 0h,
mint: City: Jerusalem, Region: Judaea, Province: Judaea,
date: Dated Year of Claudius (Year 14 = 54 A.D.)
ref: RPC I 4971, Hedin 652,
Q-001quadrans
|
|
ROMAN EMPIRE PROVINCIAL, Claudius & Britannicus. AE23, struck in Thessalonika, Macedonia. Obv : head of Claudius TI KLAYDIOC KAICAP CEBACTOC (+ countermark)
Rev : bust of Britannicus BPETANNIKOC QECCALONIK
Ref : RPC 1588
GIC 497, Touratsoglou, Thessaloniki, S. 172, 59 (V 24/R 51)
Britannicus in Nummis 8R. Smits
|
|
ROMAN EMPIRE, HADRIAN - EXERC BRITANNICUSSestertius of Hadrian, AD 122. EXERC BRITANNICVS SC ("For the army of Britain, by order of the Senate") RIC 913.
The reverse shows Hadrian addressing the troops in England, standing on a low plinth, clearly showing the Roman soldiers with their standards.
Coin currently in the British Museum Department of Coins and Medals (gallery 49, case 14).
Obv. HADRIANVS AVG COS 111 PP ("Hadrian Augustus, three times consul, father of his country")
|
|
Roman Empire. Britannicus. AE16 of Smyrna.Roman Empire. Britannicus. 50-54 AD. AE16 (3.78 gm, 16.8mm, 12h) of Ionia, Smyrna. Struck 50-54 AD. Bareheaded and draped bust of Britannicus right, ZMY below. / Nike advancing right, carrying trophy over shoulder. ЄΠI ΦIΛIΣTOY - ЄIKAΔIOΣ (Philistos and Eikadios, magistrates). VF. Bt. Herakles Numismatics, 2022. RPC I #2476 (Nero as Caesar, under Claudius); Klose XXXI (Britannicus); SNG Copenhagen 5 (Ionia) #1351; SNG von Aulock 2203-2204.Anaximander
|
|
Thracia, Deultum, Gordian III Jurukova 261Gordian III AD 238-244
AE - AE 23, 6.42g
obv. IMP GORDIANVS PIVS FEL AVG
bust, draped and cuirassed(?), laureate, r.
rev. COL FL PAC / DEVLT
Cult statue of Aphrodite & vase within portico of tetrastyle temple viewed in perspective,
with two-stepped pedement, triangular pediment with pellet, acroteria decorated with
crosses.
Moushmov 3735; Jurukova 261 (attr. by Britannicus)
Rare; VF, nice blue-green patina
added to www.wildwinds.com
Aphrodite as 'pudica' standing in the pose of the Capitoline Venus (Pat Lawrence).
Deultum was founded by veterans of Vespasian's leg. VIII Augusta before AD 77 as Colonia Flavia Pacis Deultensia.
For more information look at the thread 'Coins of mythological interest'Jochen
|
|
Thracia, Philippopolis, Septimius Severus, Varbanov 1291Septimius Severus, AD 193-211
AE 18, 4.1g
obv. AV.K.L.C. - CEVHROC
Head, laureate, r.
rev. FILIPPOP[OLEITWN]
Eros, winged, nude, stg. l. with bended r. knee, head r., with l. hand holding bow set on r. knee,
straining chord with r. hand
Varbanov (engl.) 1291
Very rare (5 ex. known), F
Very bad state, but clear the bow and parts of the chord. The rev. should be a depiction of a Lysipp
statue. For more information please look at the site of Britannicus and Pat Lawrence.
Jochen
|
|
Venus Victrix - the rear viewSabina, AR denarius, 128 AD.
RIC 412, RSC 89, Sear RCV II,3927.
A gorgeous rear view of the goddess of love, with an elegant "Grecian bend"-curve to the figure, much more pleasing than the dumpy little ladies normally found on denarii of Domna, etc.
- BritannicusBritannicus
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
