Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XII 29 September 2016
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Magnus Maximus AV Solidus. Treveri, AD 383-388. D N MAG MAXIMVS P F AVG, rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right / VICTORIA AVGG, two emperors, in consular robes, seated facing on throne with their legs draped, together holding a globe; between and behind them the upper portion of a Victory with outspread wings; between and below them, a palm branch, TROB in exergue. RIC 77b; Depeyrot 52/1. 4.51g, 21mm, 6h.
Near Mint State. Rare, particularly in such exceptional state of preservation.
Magnus Maximus was acclaimed emperor by his troops whilst he was a general of the field army of Britain in 383. After defeating the senior western emperor Gratian, he sent ambassadors to Theodosius I in the East and Valentinian II in Italy, and was recognized by Theodosius as Augustus in return for leaving Valentinian II in power.
The reverse of this coin, showing two emperors sharing a globe, reflects the sharing of imperial power across the whole of the Empire, and this is reinforced by the presence of the second 'G' in the last word of the reverse legend (AVGG = Augustorum), indicating that it is of two emperors rather than one. Sutherland and Carson suggest in RIC that, due to a number of factors including the similar size of the figures of the emperors, this coin was struck during the period of relative peace between Maximus and Theodosius; other issues of this type from the Italian mints show one figure much smaller than the other, which is thought to indicate the elevation of Maximus' son Flavius Victor to Augustus in 384.
Near Mint State. Rare, particularly in such exceptional state of preservation.
Magnus Maximus was acclaimed emperor by his troops whilst he was a general of the field army of Britain in 383. After defeating the senior western emperor Gratian, he sent ambassadors to Theodosius I in the East and Valentinian II in Italy, and was recognized by Theodosius as Augustus in return for leaving Valentinian II in power.
The reverse of this coin, showing two emperors sharing a globe, reflects the sharing of imperial power across the whole of the Empire, and this is reinforced by the presence of the second 'G' in the last word of the reverse legend (AVGG = Augustorum), indicating that it is of two emperors rather than one. Sutherland and Carson suggest in RIC that, due to a number of factors including the similar size of the figures of the emperors, this coin was struck during the period of relative peace between Maximus and Theodosius; other issues of this type from the Italian mints show one figure much smaller than the other, which is thought to indicate the elevation of Maximus' son Flavius Victor to Augustus in 384.