Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XXIII 24-25 Mar 2022
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Commodus AV Aureus. Rome, AD 189. M COMM ANT P FEL•AVG BRIT, laureate and draped bust to right / PACI•AETERNAE, Pax seated to left, holding olive branch and sceptre; C•V•P•P. RIC III - cf. 193 (denarius); C -; BMCRE -; Calicó -; NAC Spring Sale 2021, lot 1371; otherwise unpublished. 7.16g, 21mm, 12h.
Mint State. Unpublished in the standard references; the second known example and easily the finest.
This stunning aureus exhibits to a spectacular degree all the hallmarks of the energetic artistic style of the Antonine period in the intricate virtuoso handling of the traditional curled hairstyle and long beard worn by the emperor, like his father and adopted grandfather before him, and the realistic treatment of Pax's draped garments on the reverse. However, the employment of Pax on this issue is extraordinary, since Pax is otherwise conspicuously absent from Commodus' gold coinage. Indeed, this type is known only from its denarius counterpart, and from a single other example of very poor quality.
The legend PACI AETERNAE or 'eternal peace' may in hindsight represent ironic wishful thinking: Commodus' reign was dogged by both external and internal strife. While his military exploits in Dacia and Britannia were a success, leading to his adoption of the title 'Britannicus', which features in this obverse legend, there were several attempted coups, such as that of Perennis in AD 185 and that of Maternus in AD 187. Commodus, who seemed to develop paranoia and megalomania as the powerful men around him continued to jostle and frame each other in order to move closer to the emperor, likely felt no peace throughout his reign until his untimely and violent death by poison and strangling as the result of a plot by his mistress Marcia.
Mint State. Unpublished in the standard references; the second known example and easily the finest.
This stunning aureus exhibits to a spectacular degree all the hallmarks of the energetic artistic style of the Antonine period in the intricate virtuoso handling of the traditional curled hairstyle and long beard worn by the emperor, like his father and adopted grandfather before him, and the realistic treatment of Pax's draped garments on the reverse. However, the employment of Pax on this issue is extraordinary, since Pax is otherwise conspicuously absent from Commodus' gold coinage. Indeed, this type is known only from its denarius counterpart, and from a single other example of very poor quality.
The legend PACI AETERNAE or 'eternal peace' may in hindsight represent ironic wishful thinking: Commodus' reign was dogged by both external and internal strife. While his military exploits in Dacia and Britannia were a success, leading to his adoption of the title 'Britannicus', which features in this obverse legend, there were several attempted coups, such as that of Perennis in AD 185 and that of Maternus in AD 187. Commodus, who seemed to develop paranoia and megalomania as the powerful men around him continued to jostle and frame each other in order to move closer to the emperor, likely felt no peace throughout his reign until his untimely and violent death by poison and strangling as the result of a plot by his mistress Marcia.