Trebonianus Gallus Sestertius - SALVS AVGG - The Plague of Cyprian

Gaius Vibius Trebonianus Gallus was one of the very few Soldier Emperors of Italian origin, born around the year 206 AD in Perugia.



IMP CAES C VIBIVS TREBONIANVS GALLVS AVG - laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Trebonianus Gallus right
SALVS AVGG - Salus standing left, holding scepter and feeding snake coiling up around and raising from altar, S C in field
Sestertius, Rome (first emission), June - August 251
21,2 gr / 30 mm
RIC 122a, Cohen 119, Hunter 44, Sear 9679, Banti 32 (5 Specimens)



In 250 Gallus became governor of Upper Moesia and it was him who led the relief force that arrived too late when the Emperors Decius and Herennius Etruscus fought their heroic but futile last stand in the swamps of Abritus in the first days of June, 251 (see my writeup here: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/new-traianus-decius-sestertius-dacia.320502/#post-3153783 ).

Nevertheless, he was immediately hailed Emperor by the surviving troops. The Senate and people of Rome however made a different choice and instead raised Decius´ surviving younger son, the teenage Caesar Hostilian, who had stayed behind in the imperial palace with his mother, the Augusta Herennia Etruscilla, as new Emperor.
Mainly concerned with reaching Rome quickly to solidify his position, Gallus hastily signed an unpopular peace treaty with the Goths.

When he arrived at Rome in mid-June at the head of an army, the Senate could do little but accept Trebonianus as senior co-Emperor, who instead adopted Hostilian but insisted on his natural son Volusian being accepted as Caesar.

Two of the six officinae of the imperial mint now struck for Trebonianus and Hostilian, while one would have struck for Volusianus as Caesar and the last probably for Hostilian´s mother (and Decius´ widow) Herennia Etruscilla.

Apart from the uneasy dynastic solution, Gallus on his arrival in Rome was confronted with another problem: the Cyprianic plague that had been ravaging the province of Egypt since 249 had finally reached the capital and 5000 people a day were dying in Rome.

The SALVS reverse illustrated here may mark the beginning of the terrible plague that came to devastate Italy and the Empire. The salvation of the Augustii is invoked to protect Rome against the plague.
According to RIC, the two types of SALVS AVGG were struck during the first issue of Trebonianus Gallus, during his short co-rule with Hostilian, in the Summer of 251 a.D.

Here is Hostilian featuring his main new reverse type of Securitas, the assurance won by the peaceful agreement of him and his new stepfather Trebonianus:


IMP CAE C VAL HOS MES QVINTVS AVG - Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Hostilian right
SECVRITAS AVGG S C - Securitas standing facing, looking right, her legs crossed, placing right hand on head and resting left arm on column.
14,69 gr / 28,37 mm
Sestertius, Rome June-August 251
RIC (Decius) 225; Hunter p. 254, 3 and plate 81; Cohen 60; Sear 9593

The prayers did not succeed. The plague continued to kill until the 260s and it´s most prominent victim was Hostilian, who contracted it and died after 15. July 251. Alternatively, he fell victim to his co-Augustus, who in August instead raised his son Volusian to the now-vacant post of co-Augustus and imposed the damnatio memoriae upon Decius, Herennius Etruscus, and also Hostilian (despite other claims, neither the famous Ludovisi battle sarcophagus nor the recently discovered mausoleum in Viminacium were created for him). Herennia Etruscilla too disappeared from history at this point.



HERENNIA ETRVSCILLA AVG - Diademed, draped bust right, hair ridged in waves, seen three quarters from the front, wearing stephane
FECVNDITAS AVG S C – Fecunditas, wearing long dress and cloak, standing left, holding cornucopia in left hand and placing right hand over child standing in front of her and raising both it´s hands.
Sestertius, Rome (6th officina) early 251 a.D. (fifth emission of Trajan Decius)
31 mm / 17,55 gr
RIC 134a (R), Cohen 9, Banti 3, Sear 9504

This left all six officinae of the Rome mint striking for Trebonianus and Volusian alone, who now received the SALVS reverse during the second emission which lasted until the end of 251 aD.

Please post anything you have from the fateful year 251 a.D.!

 

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A doomed family! Nice coins, JG

I have a few interesting provincials of ol' T-bone:


TROAS, Alexandria. Trebonianus Gallus
CE 251-253
AE 21 mm, 4.76 gm
Obv: IMP VIB TREB GALVS AV; laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev: COL AV / TROA; Apollo, head right and holding , seated facing on griffin springing right, head left
Ref: RPC IX 407; Bellinger A403


MYSIA, Lampsacus. Trebonianus Gallus
CE 251-253; Sossios, strategos
AE 23 mm, 5.3 gm
Obv: ΑVΤ Κ ΟVΙΒ ΤΡ ΓΑΛΛΟϹ; laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
Rev: ΛΑΝΨΑΚΗΝ ЄΠΙ ϹΤΡ ϹΟϹϹΙΟV; ithyphallic Priapus standing left on base, holding filleted thyrsus and pouring cantharus over altar
Ref: RPC IX 394


PHOENICIA, Tyre. Trebonianus Gallus
CE 251-253
Æ dichalkon, 25 mm, 13.39 gm, 6h
Obv: IMP C C VIBIVS TREBO GALLVS AVG; laureate and draped bust right
Rev: COL TYRO METR[O?]; serpent-entwined baetyl; murex shell to left, palm tree to right
Ref: RPC IX online 1981; Rouvier 2476; Babelon 2296; AUB –; BMC –.

 

This issue of Herennia Etruscilla from Antioch is thought to be one of her last. She has the late-style coiffure and there are dots under the obverse portrait as control marks. These were only used at Antioch and only at the end of Decius' reign:

 

Terrific write-up JG. I have a Trebonianus Gallus sestertius that supposedly relates to the Plague of Cyprian with a somewhat unusual Apollo reverse - this comes in APOLLO and APOLL reverse legend variations. Unfortunately, my specimen has a lot of problems - somebody chiseled away at the portrait (damnatio memoriae?) and the reverse is just worn and corroded.

M-A Shops has a much nicer one (APOLL version, with a reference to the Plague) here:
https://www.ma-shops.com/henzen/item.php?id=25425&lang=en



Trebonianus Gallus
Æ Sestertius - Rome Mint
(253 A.D.)
IMP CAE C VIB TREB GALLVS AVG, laureate, cuirassed draped bust right / APOLLO SALVTARI S-C, Apollo naked standing left, holding branch & resting hand on lyre set on a rock.
RIC 104b (rarer than APOLL).
(17.15 grams / 27 mm)

 

Father and son:

 

Great coins all! The plague descending upon Rome certainly didn't help the state of affairs confronting the Romans at this time.

 

Neat emperor - claimed Etruscan origin. I believe he adopted Decius's son Hostilian. I'd love to get a sestertius of him someday.Here's Decius as well.

 

A great read, thank you!
I have three coins, two Herrenia Etruscilla and one of Trebonianus Gallus. I don't think I have ever photographed or paid any attention to the Trebonianus- poor guy has been sitting in an envelope forever!

Ladies first

Silver antoninianus, RIC IV 59b, RSC IV 19, VF, struck with worn dies, 5.03g, 21.7mm, 180o, Rome mint, 249 - 251 A.D.; obverse HER ETRVSCILLA AVG, diademed and draped bust right, on crescent; reverse PVDICITIA AVG, Pudicitia (modesty) seated left, drawing veil from face with right, scepter in left


Herennia Etruscilla Rome 251
HER ETRVSCILLA AVG
IVNO REGINA
Juno standing left, peacock at feet

and this Trebonianus Gallus provincial

Moesia, Viminacium
Trebonianus Gallus
July 251-Nov 251; Ae 27
Moesia standing between lion and bull

 

Here's an ant of Hostilian (as Augustus) issued in 251 under T-bone. Note the dots like @Roman Collector's Etruscilla, also from Antioch.


Kind of a wild obverse legend: C OVAL OSTIL MES COVINTVS AVG, but I find the reverse legend puzzling: SAECVLVM NOVVM. This would have made sense under Philip (1000th anniversary of Rome), but in 251? (Any thoughts on this JG?)

 

Sure, Alex :
Erika Manders ("Images of Power", 2012, p.22) explains: "That the celebration which took place during Philippus´ reign also had significance for later emperors is proven by the SAECVLVM NOVVM coin types that were minted by Hostilian, Trebonianus Gallus and Volusian".
I am no expert on roman silver or the coinage of Antioch but find it interesting that while Philipp I and II struck the type on both silver and bronze coins from the Rome mint, it was continued exclusively on silver from the mint of Antioch in 251-253. It is also found on Ants of Herennia Etruscilla, but not from Decius and Herennius Etruscus, while it is used by Hostilian both as Caesar and as Augustus.
This might put some light on the chronology of this "Year of the five Emperors" and prove that Etruscilla in fact continued to strike into the reign of Decius´successors.
JG

OMG Octavius, those Sestertii are amazing!!!

I´d like that one but was lucky to find mine for only 10 % of that beauty´s price tag. What made me buy it besides the portrait is that yellow (Tiber?) patina which gives it a colour close to a classic Orichalcum specimen while in the mid 3rd Century all bronze coins were made of copper regardless of denomination.