Numismatica Ars Classica
Auction 132 30-31 May 2022
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Commodus caesar, 166 – 177
Aureus 175-176, AV 7.32 g. COMMODO CAES AVG FIL GERM SARM Bare headed, draped and cuirassed bust r. Rev. DE GERMANIS Two captives seated back to back at foot of trophy. C 76 var. (not draped and cuirassed). BMC M. Aurelius 642 note. RIC M. Aurelius 605 var. (draped only). Calicó 2229 (these dies).
Very rare and in exceptional condition for the issue, undoubtedly among the finest
specimens known. An issue of great fascination and historical importance
perfectly struck and centred on a full flan. Good extremely fine
Ex Leu 83, 2002, 779 and NAC 51, 2009, 326 sales.
This aureus celebrates Roman victory a series of wars on the empire's northern frontier known as the Bellum Germanicum et Sarmaticum. These annual confrontations demanded the presence of the emperor Marcus Aurelius while his young son, the Caesar Commodus, remained in Rome largely unaffected. When this aureus was struck, c. 175-176, Commodus held the rank of Caesar and had not personally witnessed the terrors of war on the Rhine and Danube; that would be reserved until 178, when the heir-apparent joined his father to help wage the second Marcomannic War. Though Commodus had not yet participated in warfare, he none the less shared in his father's hard-earned titles of Germanicus and Sarmaticus, both of which are included in his inscription on this aureus. These experiences at his father's side near the end of the old emperor's life may have convinced Commodus to later entrust such campaigns to his frontier generals while he remained in Rome to enjoy the comforts of his palace and the spectacles of the circus and the Colosseum. The title Germanicus ('conqueror of the Germans') apparently was awarded on October 15, 172, and the title Sarmaticus at the end of the campaign season of 175. By then Commodus was thirteen and had not yet assumed the toga virilis, the toga of manhood. The reverse of this aureus speaks of these campaigns with the inscription DE GERMANIS encompassing a military trophy flanked by two captives. The bound men would have come from the barbarian nations that occupied lands across the Rhine and Danube, for in recent years the Romans had won wars against Germans, the Quadi, the Jazyges and the Sarmatians. Many other types celebrated Roman victories in this theatre, and they became the centrepiece of coin propaganda of the era. Considering these wars were not only a source of great financial strain, but they annually cost the lives of many young men, it was essential for Marcus Aurelius to demonstrate success in the form of attractive coin types showing bound barbarians, trophies, and piles of captured shields, weapons and trumpets.
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Aureus 175-176, AV 7.32 g. COMMODO CAES AVG FIL GERM SARM Bare headed, draped and cuirassed bust r. Rev. DE GERMANIS Two captives seated back to back at foot of trophy. C 76 var. (not draped and cuirassed). BMC M. Aurelius 642 note. RIC M. Aurelius 605 var. (draped only). Calicó 2229 (these dies).
Very rare and in exceptional condition for the issue, undoubtedly among the finest
specimens known. An issue of great fascination and historical importance
perfectly struck and centred on a full flan. Good extremely fine
Ex Leu 83, 2002, 779 and NAC 51, 2009, 326 sales.
This aureus celebrates Roman victory a series of wars on the empire's northern frontier known as the Bellum Germanicum et Sarmaticum. These annual confrontations demanded the presence of the emperor Marcus Aurelius while his young son, the Caesar Commodus, remained in Rome largely unaffected. When this aureus was struck, c. 175-176, Commodus held the rank of Caesar and had not personally witnessed the terrors of war on the Rhine and Danube; that would be reserved until 178, when the heir-apparent joined his father to help wage the second Marcomannic War. Though Commodus had not yet participated in warfare, he none the less shared in his father's hard-earned titles of Germanicus and Sarmaticus, both of which are included in his inscription on this aureus. These experiences at his father's side near the end of the old emperor's life may have convinced Commodus to later entrust such campaigns to his frontier generals while he remained in Rome to enjoy the comforts of his palace and the spectacles of the circus and the Colosseum. The title Germanicus ('conqueror of the Germans') apparently was awarded on October 15, 172, and the title Sarmaticus at the end of the campaign season of 175. By then Commodus was thirteen and had not yet assumed the toga virilis, the toga of manhood. The reverse of this aureus speaks of these campaigns with the inscription DE GERMANIS encompassing a military trophy flanked by two captives. The bound men would have come from the barbarian nations that occupied lands across the Rhine and Danube, for in recent years the Romans had won wars against Germans, the Quadi, the Jazyges and the Sarmatians. Many other types celebrated Roman victories in this theatre, and they became the centrepiece of coin propaganda of the era. Considering these wars were not only a source of great financial strain, but they annually cost the lives of many young men, it was essential for Marcus Aurelius to demonstrate success in the form of attractive coin types showing bound barbarians, trophies, and piles of captured shields, weapons and trumpets.
View a video of this lot