Antoninianus of Valerian (253-260), minted in Viminacium (Moesia), 254-255 CE
Diameter: 2.2 cm
Description
Obverse:
IMP C LIC VALERIANVS AVG
(Imperator Caesar Publius Licinius Valerianus Augustus)
Bust of Valerian facing right with short hair and no beard, wearing radiate crown and military garb.
Reverse:
PACATORI ORB[IS]
(Pacatori Orbis)
Jupiter seated, facing left, with a scepter in his left hand and a patera in his right hand. There is an eagle at his feet to the left.
Other notes: Beaded ring border. Heavy wear on the reverse side of this coin as Jupiter, the eagle, and the writing are all difficult to view in detail and clarity. The imperfections of the striking process are also visible, with the border decoration and the writing cut off in certain spots.
Commentary
This coin was produced under the rule of emperor Valerian. Valerian was selected as emperor after a military coup in which the previous emperor, Trebonianus Gallus, and the leader of the coup, Aemilianus, perished (Wasson 2017). This particular coin type was minted within the first two years of Valerian’s rule (Kurth; OCRE) and so is likely one of the first coin types he minted.
The profile of Valerian’s head has many points of interest. Among the first things to catch a viewer’s eye is the radiate crown, which represents the sun and powers associated with it (Forum Ancient Coins). Through the use of this crown, Valerian conveyed his power and authority, as the sun is often associated with Jupiter, the ruler of the gods. Valerian also shows his power through the military cloak seen on his shoulders. This image shows the Roman people his military background and prowess as he was a military leader who came to power partially because of support from the military. Another way in which Valerian’s power is shown is through the youthful way he is presented (without a beard), as he would have taken the role of emperor in his fifties. This idea of the emperor being eternally youthful helps bolster his image through the idea that he is so powerful a man that he does not age. Finally, the inscription, which spells out the complete title of Valerian,conveys his power through the titles “Emperor Caesar” (IMP C) and “Augustus” (AVG). (Though portions of the words were cut off, we were able to finish the translation through other published examples of this coin issue.) It is, however, very unusual that Valerian is not shown with a beard, as had been customary for emperors since the reign of Hadrian.
As the Roman god of the sky and king of all gods, Jupiter represented power, protected the state and the laws, and personified the sovereignty and unity of the Roman empire (Stevenson 1889, 488). It was also believed that Jupiter helped protect the public from foreign threats during both peacetime and wartime (Wasson 2014). His image was frequently used on Roman imperial coins of the third century CE (Manders 2012, 102-107). His scepter symbolizes power, authority, and sovereignty. He is also holding a patera, which is used for pouring libations, offerings to Roman gods. This could be a reference to Valerian holding the position of Pontifex Maximus, head priest, of the Roman empire and his religious power. The patera is also an ancient symbol of health, which could symbolize both the health of Valerian and the health of the empire (Pearn). At Jupiter’s feet is an eagle, Jupiter’s main sacred animal and emblem of the sky god’s authority (Asuni). Taken together, the imagery on the back of the coin sends a message of power, authority, and sovereignty. The inscription, PACATORI ORBIS, means “to/for the pacifier of the world.” The Dative form of the noun “pacator” indicates that Valerian was paying honor to Jupiter as “pacificier of the world,” but in doing so he also associates himself with Jupiter and suggests that his authority translated to the strength of the empire as a whole.
The coin as a whole is meant to exhibit Valerian’s power. The obverse shows it through the inscription, which fully discloses his imperial position and lineage; while the image depicts him in military garb, displaying his power over the empire; and a radiate crown, likening him to the sun god. The reverse on the other hand, depicts an image of Jupiter and other objects which also symbolize power and prestige as well as an inscription which claims he is the pacifier of the world. The juxtaposition likens Valerian to Jupiter and displays his might both through his association with Jupiter as well as through the title bestowed upon him.
Different examples of this coin issue, while all meant to depict the same thing, have slight differences in the imagery (compare, for example, the style of Jupiter’s body and throne on the coin illustrated by Kurth for RIC218, and those illustrated in OCRE). These differences are likely due to the coins being minted at different locations with different dies and strikers, which would result in slightly different versions of the same standard coin. The images as a whole, while effective at displaying the emperor’s power, were very generic and were used by many other emperors before and after Valerian. As a result, the coin did not do a good job of distinguishing him from other rulers. We believe that generic images were chosen because the coin was made design was made just a year or two into his reign and because of that, Valerian had not yet had a chance to give himself a distinctive identity as an emperor.
Works Cited:
Asuni, Michele. 2013. “Jupiter and Eagle.” The Roman House at Hopkins. Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum. Accessed December 2, 2020. https://archaeologicalmuseum.jhu.edu/the-collection/object-stories/the-roman-house-at-hopkins/the-art-of-light/jupiter-and-eagle/.
Forum Ancient Coins. 2016. “Radiate.” NumisWiki – The Collaborative Numismatics Project. Forum Ancient Coins. Accessed December 9, 2020. http://www.forumancientcoins.com/numiswiki/view.asp?key=radiate.
Kurth, Dane. n.d. “Browsing Roman Imperial Coins of Valerian I.” Wildwinds. Accessed December 2, 2020. http://www.wildwinds.com/coins/ric/valerian_I/i.html.
Manders, Erika. 2012. Coining Images of Power. Patterns in the Representation of Roman Emperors on Imperial Coinage, A.D. 193-284. Leiden: Brill. doi: https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004224001
Metcalf, Willam E. 2010. “Numismatics.” In The Oxford Handbook of Roman Studies, edited by Alessandro Barchiesi and Walter Scheidel. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Metcalf, William E., ed. 2012. The Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Coinage. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
OCRE. Online Coins of the Roman Empire. “RIC Valerian V 218.” Online Coins of the Roman Empire, American Numismatic Society. Accessed December 9, 2020. http://numismatics.org/ocre/id/ric.5.val_i.218
Pearn, J. 2000. “Patera in Aere. Symbols of the Goddess of Health on Coins and Medals.” Vesalius: Acta Internationales Historiae Medicinae 6 (1): 51-54. Accessed December 6, 2020. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/11624589/.
Stevenson, Seth William. 1889. A Dictionary of Roman Coins, Republican and Imperial. London: G. Bell and Sons.
“Valerian.” Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, inc., April 23, 2020. https://www.britannica.com/biography/Valerian-Roman-emperor.
Wasson, Donald L. 2014. “Jupiter.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. Ancient History Encyclopedia. Accessed November 28, 2020. https://www.ancient.eu/jupiter/.
Wasson, Donald L. 2017. “Valerian.” Ancient History Encyclopedia. Ancient History Encyclopedia. November 28. https://www.ancient.eu/valerian/.
Coin type: RIC V Valerian 218; Sear 9953
Research by: Cole Stephenson, Class of 2024; Jake Killough, Class of 2024; Teddy Allen-Myers, Class of 2024