The Roman Empire
Domitian


Obverse
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Coin Details

  

Set Details
Coin Description:
Grade: NGC Ch AU Strike: 3/5 Surface: 5/5
Owner: Kohaku
 
Set Category: Ancients
Set Name: The Roman Empire
Slot Name: Domitian
Research: Currently not available

Owner's Description

Son of a powerful Roman general, the young Flavius Valentinianus (ca. 321 – 375 AD) received combat training concomitantly with studying the classical arts. He rapidly rose to prominence as a military commander in his own right, and as a young man advanced to the service of Augustus Constantius II. Valentinian held Christian beliefs, and therefore fell out of favor with Constantius’ successor, Julian II, who sympathized with paganism. It was only a matter of time before the ascension of the next Emperor, Jovian, who returned Valentinian’s prestige and assigned him command over Gaul. The heirless Jovian died in 364 AD after reigning only eight months, and selection of a successor fell to the military. After many deliberations, they chose Valentinian, whose battle experience qualified him to rule an Empire threatened by barbarians at nearly every border. Surmising the realm’s growing polarization, Valentinian decided to focus his rule over the Roman Empire’s western territories, while delegating leadership of the eastern provinces. He needed someone he could trust, and declared his brother Valens as eastern co-Augustus. This division of power eventually led to an imperial bifurcation that modern historians refer to as two separate, Western and Eastern Roman Empires. Western Roman Emperor Valentinian focused much of his reign on military matters. He fought successfully against a plethora of barbarian tribes, particularly the Alemanni, Quadi, and Sarmatians. With the assistance of his brilliant generals, notably Count Theodosius, Valentinian’s regime scored numerous victories, for example the successful repulsion of the Great Conspiracy, a coordinated assault on Britannia by the Picts, Scots, and Saxons. Moreover, Valentinian was the last Augustus to campaign across both Rhine and Danube rivers, and he left behind fortifications that improved stability in the west. Valentinian also engaged in reforms that - not surprisingly – favored his military, even if it meant putting the common civilian at a disadvantage. As a consequence, the greater Roman economy suffered, for instance, the inflation rate rose markedly. Coins from this period exhibit highly variable weights, another indication of the troubled economy. The situation grew so desperate that even the basis for tax collections changed. Specifically, the government refused to accept its own deflated and potentially underweight currency, and instead levied taxes based on precious metal fineness and weight. Subsequently, many coins from the period were melted. Even so, many coins survived, such as this nummus, struck in the prodigious Pannonian mint of Siscia, Valentinian’s birthplace. The obverse depicts the pearl diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Valentinian, along with the usual epithet. The reverse proclaims GLORIA ROMANORVM, signifying the glory of the Romans, and in particular Emperor Valentinian. This legend was originally employed as a title of personal honor by Constantinian dynasts, including Valentinian’s first imperial boss. The coin’s reverse presents an enigmatic scene wherein the Emperor walks to the right while dragging a subject by the hair. The pitiable figure is generally referred to as a “captive.” The Emperor proudly holds a labarum (a military standard) displaying the Christian Chi-Rho symbol. This simultaneously righteous and violent depiction is noteworthy. Throughout Rome’s long history, violence was ubiquitous, from foreign and domestic battles to gladiatorial games. It was inevitable that violence as a Roman numismatic convention became increasingly popular over time. Often, the violence manifests as a soldier or, more fashionably, the Emperor himself, either statically, for instance the depiction of an armed and armored leader, or dynamically, wherein a hostile action looms imminently before an enemy or otherwise subordinate figure. The current coin’s reverse design, wherein the Emperor holds the labarum in one hand and drags the captive with the other, manages the simultaneous promotion of the state religion (Christianity) and invocation of Rome’s military superiority and subjugation of barbarians. In contrast with this depiction, the Romans ideally treated their vanquished foes with mercy, or clementia, rather than brutality. Adding to the intrigue, such explicitly violent imagery of a captive dragged by the hair had not been employed on Roman coinage since the brutal reign of Caracalla. The imagery of an Emperor dragging a captive certainly suited Valentinian, notoriously heavy-handed for subjugating barbarian tribes. Valentinian’s impetuosity with barbarians also reputedly caused his demise; in 375 AD, a disrespectful Quadi delegation triggered the short-tempered Augustus to throw a deadly apoplectic fit. Surviving the terminal tantrum were two sons (the future Emperors Gratian and Valentinian II) and a daughter (the future Empress Flavia Galla, wife of future Emperor Theodosius), and for the next several decades, the Valentinian bloodline dominated rule over both halves of the Roman Empire. Additional Reading: "Violence on Roman Imperial Coinage," C W Malone, JNAA 20:58-72, 2009(2010). Coin Details: Western Roman Empire, Valentinian I, 364-375 AD (AE3 Nummus, 2.85 g), Struck 367-375 AD, Siscia, NGC Grade: Ch AU, Strike: 3/5, Surface: 5/5, Obverse: Pearl diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right, DN VALENTINI-ANVS PF AVG, Reverse: Emperor in military dress, advancing right, head left, holding labarum, dragging captive behind him, GLORIA RO-MANORVM, Left field: M, Right field: star over P, Mintmark: BSISC, Reference: RIC IX Siscia 14a, type xvii.

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