Marcus Aurelius Marius was a Roman usurper who claimed the throne after the downfall of the Gallic Emperor Postumus. Postumus had refused to let his troops sack the rebellious city of Mainz, whereupon they revolted and executed him. Antoninianus of Postumus, 260-268, Trier mint, SERAPI COMITI AVG type, “Serapis is my companion,” referring to the Greco-Egyptian god Serapis. Following the revolt of the city of Mainz, Marius, a former blacksmith by trade who had risen through the ranks of the Roman army to become an officer, was raised on a shield and acclaimed Augustus by the assembled troops. Tradition has it that the emperor Postumus had refused the expectation of the troops that they would be able to plunder Mainz, hence they revolted and killed him. Listed among the 30 Tyrants by the Historia Augusta he moved to Trier in Germania to solidify his power base. A character of low birth according to Edward Gibbon, nevertheless Marius possessed the virtues of blunt honesty and matchless strength. However, the Praetorian prefect Victorinus, who had served under Postumus, came into conflict with Marius and the latter was executed, ending a reign that was supposedly just a few days according to the chronicler Aurelius Victor. Clearly, however, his reign was somewhat longer as he managed to strike a significant quantity of antoniniani and a lesser number of aurei in his name, though his coinage is scarce. Below is a coin of Marius recently procured from JAZ Numismatics (@John Anthony) ex the @Sallent collection. Marius, AD 269. AE Antoninianus. 17Mm, 2.6g, 6h; Mainz or Trier, AD 269. Obv.: IMP C M AVR MARIVS AVG Radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Rev.: VICTORIA AVG Victory advancing right, holding wreath and palm frond. Reference: RIC 18. From the Sallent Collection. Thanks for looking. Please share any coins of this short-lived usurper or other types of the Gallic Empire.
..o wow ach!..very nice! ..i need him and Tet ll...plus that other fella who's 2 coins are somewhere inna museum and a large chunk of coins...^^
@ancient coin hunter.....Nice pick up... There is also the possibility that news of his death didn't reach the mints for a while, which could be plausible given the utter chaos at the time....But as you said a lot longer than 2-3 days.......Here's mine with Victory heading West. MARIUS. Romano-Gallic Emperor, 269 AD. Obverse..IMP CM AVR MARIVS AVG, radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Reverse..VICTORIA AVG, Victory standing left, holding wreath and palm. RIC#17...Mint Trier?
Marius Bronze Antoninianus Gallic Empire, unidentified mint Obv: IMP C M AVR MARIVS AVG Rev: VIRTVS AVG - Soldier with spear, leaning on shield RIC 19 20mm, 3.4g
MARIUS, Antoninianus Treveri, 269 2.90 g - 19 mm S 11119 - C 7 - RIC Vb 5 IMP C M AVR MARIVS PF AVG, Radiate bust right CONCORD MILIT, Clasped right hands
Nice coins and write up, @ancient coin hunter ! That is a great Marius. As requested, Short lived Usurpers... LAELIANUS RI Laelianus CE 269 AE Ant 19mm 3.4g Moguntiacum mint Radiate cuirassed Victory RIC Vb 9 p373 MARIUS RI Marius 269 Gallic Usurper BI Ant CONCORD MILIT Clasped Hands
I wanted a Marius coin for most of my life, but since it has become a bit less rare, I finally bought one last year. It's from the South Petherton hoard, that was found in South Somerset (Britain) in 2013: 7565 antoniniani. Over 3000 were from Victorinus and 81 from the emperor Marius. The hoard was buried in 274 AD and contained a small number of earlier coins, before 253 AD. There were 1785 coins of the Valerian-Gallienus dynasty, 4816 of the Gallic empire, and 33 barbarous radiates. As for the rare heads: 4 Valerian II, 12 Divus Valerian II; 10 Saloninus caesar, 1 Saloninus augustus; 773 Postumus, 23 Laelianus, 81 Marius, 3296 Victorinus, 526 Tetricus I, 112 Tetricus II. 1% Marius is not much, but still, dozens of Marius antoniniani flooding into the market, so I could afford one. A worn reverse die, and the coin is a bit dirty. Still, it is welcome here. Marius (269), antoninanus. Cologne. Radiate, cuirassed bust right. IMP C M AVR MARIVS AVG. Rev. Victory standing left, holding wreath and palm frond. VICTO RIAAVG, Victory standing left, holding wreath and palm frond. 2nd emission, circa mid AD 269. 19.5 mm, 2.86 gr.
Terrific writeup, @ancient coin hunter, with coins to match. ...Wow. A lot of Marii (does that work for proper nouns?) in the room already! I never got beyond the easy ones, but the drama of the reigns is memorably conveyed, even by Sear. ...Have to like the 'CONCORDIA MILIT[VM]' legend. A lot like the 'FEL. TEMP. REPARATIO' one of the following century. Yeah, Good Luck with that....
