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Julia Maesa (160? – 224/5 AD) grew up in Emesa, captial of the Roman province of Syria and mecca for devotees of the popular eastern sun god Elagabal. She was the daughter of Elagabal's high priest, thus her family enjoyed both wealth and political power. The Emesan clan's status surged even further when Julia Maesa's younger sister, Julia Domna, married Septimus Severus, who emerged as Rome's Augustus in 193 AD.
For the next two decades, the Severan-Emesan dynasty ruled the Roman Empire. However, the lineage faced the possibility of oblivion following the murder of Severus’ son Caracalla. The only remaining male descendants were Julia Maesa’s two grandsons: Elagabalus and Severus Alexander. Even if Julia Maesa did not have quite the intellect of Julia Domna, she carried on her now-deceased younger sister’s shrewdness, prestige, and wealth.
It was now Julia Maesa’s responsibility to regain the throne away from Caracalla’s successor and former Praetorian prefect, namely Macrinus. Making the job problematic, the Senate surprisingly confirmed the equestrian-born Macrinus, despite his relatively low-birth and a lack of political influence in Rome. Even so, Julia Maesa had a cunning plan. She presented to the troops her elder grandson, Elagabalus, misleadingly naming him as to be construed as Caracalla’s (illegitimate) son. Making the story very persuasive was a promise to return to the days of Caracalla, i.e., reinstatement of a rather large pay raise that Macrinus had rescinded in order to fund barbarian bribes. The scheme succeeded. In 218 AD, a Syrian legion proclaimed Elagabalus as Augustus, and eliminated Macrinus.
Julia Maesa was rewarded with the title
Augusta avia Augusti, or Augusta, grandmother of Augustus. Denarii, such as this one struck sometime between 218 and 222 AD, were issued in her honor. Her grandmotherly visage adorns the obverse, and on the verso Pudicitia sits on a throne, pulling at her veil and holding a scepter. Pudicitia epitomized the Roman concepts of modesty and sexual virtue, not necessarily the most obvious numismatic pairing for the Augustus' grandmother.
No one could have been more contrarian to Pudicitia and the Roman values of modesty and sexual virtues than Julia Maesa’s elder grandson. Augustus Elagabalus immersed himself in constant, scandalous religious and sexual escapades (for more juicy details, see the discussion under Elagabalus’ denarius in this Ancients Custom Set). Luckily for the Roman populace, day-to-day governance was largely deferred to the Emesan women. Perhaps the choice of Pudicitia for this coin was propaganda towards improving Elagabalus’ image, or distancing Julia Maesa from her grandsons’ antics.
Concerned about her elder grandson’s performance (and longevity) as Augustus, Julia Maesa made sure her younger grandson, Severus Alexander, was next in line. She persuaded Elagabalus to name his cousin as heir, although the Emperor later changed his mind and tried to have Alexander murdered. Instead, the Praetorian Guards killed Elagabalus, and afterwards were content to proclaim Alexander as the next Augustus.
Since her next grandson was now wearing the purple, Julia Maesa still held the title of Augusta. In fact, she was more involved in governance under Alexander’s reign than during Elagabalus’. For instance, she led the Consilium Principis, a council that guided the Senate to act in the Emperor’s interests - no small task given Julia Maesa's age and gender.
During the early years of Alexander's reign, Julia Maesa's life full of triumph and tragedy reached its end. At least, she lived long enough to see her younger grandson mature into an effective Augustus, and reclaim glory for her Emesan clan.
Coin Details: ROMAN EMPIRE, Julia Maesa, 218-224/5 AD, AR Denarius (3.25 g), Struck in Rome 218-222 AD, NGC Grade: MS, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 4/5, Obverse: Draped bust right, IVLIA MAESA AVG, Reverse: Pudicitia seated left, pulling veil and holding scepter, PVDICITIA, Reference: RIC 268 (Elagabalus); BMC 76 (Elagabalus), S 7756, C 36.