A lot of history packed into that carefully crafted Video. Authorizing that coin inflamed the idea that Caesar thought of himself as a King in all but name. His enemies then had the proof and justification that the tyrant had to go! "Well done"!
Reposted… FORUM COINS: "The coin that killed ."Caesar The obverse legend declares Caesar is "Dictator for Life" and he wears the veil, symbolic of his life-term position as Pontifex Maximus. Caesar would be both the dictator and high priest of Rome for the remainder of his life, but his life would end only a few weeks after this coin was struck. For Caesar to put his image on coins and in effect declare himself king was too much for Brutus and his republican allies. On the Ides of March (15 March) 44 B.C. Caesar was stabbed to death by as many as 60 conspirators, led by Brutus and Cassius. According to Plutarch, a seer had warned that harm would come to Caesar no later than the Ides of March. On his way to the Theater of Pompey, where he would be assassinated, Caesar passed the seer and joked, "The ides of March have come," meaning to say that the prophecy had not been fulfilled, to which the seer replied "Aye, Caesar; but not gone." This meeting is famously dramatized in William Shakespeare's play Julius Caesar, when Caesar is warned by the soothsayer to "beware the Ides of March." Minted for Caesar's planned Parthian war, this type was often carelessly struck indicating the mint was working under great pressure. Mine: Roman Imperiatorial Julius Caesar Lifetime P Sepullius Macer AR Denarius, 1st 2 weeks-Mar 44 BCE, 19 mm, 4.03g. Obv: CAESAR – DICT PERPETVO Veiled and wreathed head of Caesar R. Rev: P·SEPVLLIVS – MACER Venus standing l., holding Victory and sceptre resting on star. Ref: Syd 1074a Sear Imperators 107e Crawford 480-14 Rare - minted in last two weeks of his reign, or two weeks before he was assassinated. - veiled, as he held the offce of Pontifex Maximus for several years, and that office was very important to him personally. - wreathed... just short of being king... big no-no - DICT PERPETVO - yeah, he was a king... so Roman Republic inherently and culturally hated kings. - fairly difficult to capture with the star on reverse - reasonably centered with most/all devices and legends (this is not as important to me cuz its numismatic vs the intrinsic Historical impact.) Alföldi arranges Crawford 480 series coins in (44 BC) month order as follows: RRC 480/1, Buca - January RRC 480/2, DICT QVART - early February RRC 480/3/4/5, CAESAR IMP - late February RRC 480/6/7/8/9/10/11/12/13/14, DICT PERPETVO - early to mid March RRC 480/17/18, CAESAR IMPER - late March RRC 480/19/20, PARENS PATRIAE - April RRC 480/15/16, MARIDIANVS - April RRC 480/21/22, CLEMENTIAE CAESARIS and Mark Antony - April
CASSIUS This guy was probly the real ring leader, with Brutus being vililfied by Shakespeare. Cassius had supper with Caesar the night before the Ides, and convinced him to go to the Senate the next day. Caesar was planning to skip going. However, we seem to feel Caesar was a hero… he actually murdered 2 million Gauls / Celts, and murdered the Roman Republic. He stole the Roman Treasury, and did not pay his debts. Some theorize he would not stand in the Senate due to an aging, probly sickly body, and that he would crap his robes… Interesting parallels to some of todays histories… GAIUS CASSIUS LONGINUS & PUBLIUS CORNELIUS LENTULUS SPINTHER AR silver denarius. Struck circa 42 BC, at a mobile military mint moving with Brutus & Cassius, probably located in Smyrna. C CASSI IMP LEIBERTAS, veiled & draped bust of Libertas right. Reverse - LENTVLVS SPINT, jug & lituus. 18mm, 3.3g. Ex: Incitatis Coins (Steve McBride)
BRUTUS Repost: This is my write-up from several years ago... Rome had been ruled by Kings traditionally since 753 BCE. However, her last King, after many offenses and excesses at the expense of the Roman people... Lucius Tarquinius Superbus was deposed in 509 BCE. The Monarchy was replaced by a Republic. Instrumental in the overthrow of the monarchy, one of the first two Consuls of Rome in 509BCE, was Lucius Junius Brutus. He was consul with Lucius Tarquinius Collatinus and later Publius Valerius Publicola. According to Livy, one of Brutus' first acts as a Consul was to have the Roman citizens swear an oath to never allow a King of Rome. Even when his own two sons were caught in a conspiracy to restore the monarchy, under orders of the Consuls, he stoically witnessed their execution... Tough love... Later, in 439 BCE Republican Rome was gripped in a severe famine; people starving, suffering abounded. Enter Spurius Maelius, a wealthy Plebeian, who saw an opportunity to seize Rome... He purchased a large amount of wheat to distribute - at a low price - to the starving people of Rome. However, his ulterior motive was to foster support to usurp the fledgling Republic and proclaim himself Rex (King). A hated word in Roman vocabulary! The cry of the people arose and Maelius was to appear before the aging Cincinnatus, (the elected Dictator during this crisis.) Enter Gaius Servilius Ahala, Magister Equitum (Master of the Horse). Maelius refused to appear, and was hunted down and killed by Ahala. Ahala then razed his home to the ground and distributed the withheld wheat to the starving people. Fast forward to 54 BCE: Long descendant of the two early Republic Heroes, Marcius Junius Brutus, (also known as Quintus Servilius Caepio Brutus), new to politics at 31 years old, enters the membership of the vigintisexvirate (the three Moneyers authorized to mint coinage). This was the first step on the cursus honorum - the road to political office in the Republic. Because of his deep-rooted love for the Res Publica, he honors his ancestral heritage by placing the busts of both great family forefathers, Brutus and Ahala, on the obverse and reverse of the denarius issue of 54BCE. You all know the rest of the story as Senator Brutus, who on the Idus Martiae, 15-Mar-44 BCE, delivered the killing blow to the Tyrant Gaius Iulius Caesar, usurper of the Res Publica... Roman Republic 54 BCE AR Denarius, 18.3mm, 3.7g Moneyer: Marcus Iunius Brutus (aka Quintus Servillius Caepio Brutus) Obv: Bare hd of L. Iunius Brutus (Consul 509 BCE), Bearded r, BRVTVS behind Rev: Bare hd of C. Servilius Ahala (Master of the Horse 439 BCE), bearded r, AHALA behind Ref: Sear 398, Crawford 433/2, from collection W. Esty CKXSUB 613 My camera captures ALL details, and this coin looks VERY good in hand...the scratches are virtually non-existent to these tired eyes.
