Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XX 29-30 Oct 2020
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Probus AV Aureus. Siscia, AD 279. IMP C M AVR PROBVS P F AVG, draped and cuirassed bust left wearing ornate helmet, presenting spear and holding shield decorated with aegis / P M TRI P, Probus standing in car of slow quadriga to right, laureate and togate, holding eagle-tipped sceptre in left hand and extending right hand with open palm; COS III in exergue. RIC -, cf. 579 (for reverse type); C -, cf. 453 (for reverse type); Calicó -, cf. 4177 (for reverse type); NAC 25, lot 231 (same dies). 6.41g, 21mm, 6h.
Near Mint State. Of the greatest rarity; only the second knwon specimen.
From the Long Valley River Collection;
Ex Helios Numismatik GmbH, Auction 3, 29 April 2009, lot 231.
Raised to power by the army, Marcus Aurelius Probus was a product of the third century crisis that saw a marked shift in the paradigm of imperial leadership. No longer did an emperor emerge from a system of succession, either as son or inherited heir of a sitting emperor, instead emperors were chosen by the military based on factors that included popularity, generosity towards the troops and their ability to produce measurable outcomes.
"As a youth Probus became so famed for his bodily strength that by approval of Valerian he received a tribuneship almost before his beard was grown" (Historia Augusta, 3.1). From this early recognition Probus went from strength to strength, becoming one of the highest placed lieutenants of the Emperor Aurelian and then supreme commander of the East under the Emperor Tacitus. Upon the death of Tacitus, Probus was made emperor by the army of Syria in AD 276, having defeated Florianus who too had attempted to ascend the imperial throne. The senate duly acknowledged the exploits of Probus and conferred upon him the names: Caesar, Augustus, Pontifex Maximus as well as granting him Tribunitian power and Proconsular command.
Yet, the apparent stability granted to Probus by the affirmation of his leadership was not enough to quell the economic and social unrest that continuously threatened peace across the empire. Probus's rule was marked by the threat of both usurpation and of advances from invaders along the borders. This instability made it all the more important for Probus to deliver, at all times, a composite vision of the emperor 'victorious' and we can see this reflected in his coinage. This specimen, of the highest rarity, encapsulates this idea across both its obverse and reverse.
On the reverse Probus stands garbed in ceremonial attire: togate with a laureate crown, he holds an eagle tipped sceptre in one hand and guides a quadriga with calm composure in the other. This composition draws direct parallels with triumphal and consular processions and thereby contributes a formal ritual facet to the image of the emperor victorious. On the obverse, the militant dimension of this image is added. This 'heroic bust' portrait, in which the emperor is depicted in a three-quarter view, tempts recollection of earlier numismatic prototypes and thereby of other legendary military leaders as Probus is presented as an emperor poised and ready to strike. The composition also invites us to hone in on some of the finery that he is adorned in, from an ornate helmet topped with a laurel wreath to a shield proudly displaying the head of Medusa set to petrify any incoming enemy.
This image of Probus victorious prevails across his coinage and few issues celebrate any specific events, which presents a challenge to numismatists when trying to establish a chronology in his reign. We can however presume that due to the pairing of TRI P with COS III the coin celebrates the third or fourth renewal of his tribunician power due to the unorthodox (but consistent) links between titles across his coinage.
Near Mint State. Of the greatest rarity; only the second knwon specimen.
From the Long Valley River Collection;
Ex Helios Numismatik GmbH, Auction 3, 29 April 2009, lot 231.
Raised to power by the army, Marcus Aurelius Probus was a product of the third century crisis that saw a marked shift in the paradigm of imperial leadership. No longer did an emperor emerge from a system of succession, either as son or inherited heir of a sitting emperor, instead emperors were chosen by the military based on factors that included popularity, generosity towards the troops and their ability to produce measurable outcomes.
"As a youth Probus became so famed for his bodily strength that by approval of Valerian he received a tribuneship almost before his beard was grown" (Historia Augusta, 3.1). From this early recognition Probus went from strength to strength, becoming one of the highest placed lieutenants of the Emperor Aurelian and then supreme commander of the East under the Emperor Tacitus. Upon the death of Tacitus, Probus was made emperor by the army of Syria in AD 276, having defeated Florianus who too had attempted to ascend the imperial throne. The senate duly acknowledged the exploits of Probus and conferred upon him the names: Caesar, Augustus, Pontifex Maximus as well as granting him Tribunitian power and Proconsular command.
Yet, the apparent stability granted to Probus by the affirmation of his leadership was not enough to quell the economic and social unrest that continuously threatened peace across the empire. Probus's rule was marked by the threat of both usurpation and of advances from invaders along the borders. This instability made it all the more important for Probus to deliver, at all times, a composite vision of the emperor 'victorious' and we can see this reflected in his coinage. This specimen, of the highest rarity, encapsulates this idea across both its obverse and reverse.
On the reverse Probus stands garbed in ceremonial attire: togate with a laureate crown, he holds an eagle tipped sceptre in one hand and guides a quadriga with calm composure in the other. This composition draws direct parallels with triumphal and consular processions and thereby contributes a formal ritual facet to the image of the emperor victorious. On the obverse, the militant dimension of this image is added. This 'heroic bust' portrait, in which the emperor is depicted in a three-quarter view, tempts recollection of earlier numismatic prototypes and thereby of other legendary military leaders as Probus is presented as an emperor poised and ready to strike. The composition also invites us to hone in on some of the finery that he is adorned in, from an ornate helmet topped with a laurel wreath to a shield proudly displaying the head of Medusa set to petrify any incoming enemy.
This image of Probus victorious prevails across his coinage and few issues celebrate any specific events, which presents a challenge to numismatists when trying to establish a chronology in his reign. We can however presume that due to the pairing of TRI P with COS III the coin celebrates the third or fourth renewal of his tribunician power due to the unorthodox (but consistent) links between titles across his coinage.