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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;Orielensis, post: 7972019, member: 96898&quot;]<font size="3"><font size="4">This has been on my desk for a while, but only now I found the time for a write-up. I had wanted a portrait coin of Germanicus for a while, and am happy to have finally found an example I like:</font></font></p><p><font size="3">[ATTACH=full]1382905[/ATTACH] </font></p><p><font size="3">Germanicus (postumus issue under Claudius), AE as, 40–54 AD, Rome mint. Obv: GERMANICVS CAESAR TI AVG F DIVI AVG N; head of Germanicus, bare, r. Rev: TI CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GERM P M TR P IMP P P; large S C. Ref: RIC I (second edition) Claudius 106. 27mm, 10.81g. </font></p><p><br /></p><p><font size="4">Germanicus certainly is a key figure of the Julio-Claudian dynasty. Born in 15 BC, he was a great-nephew of Augustus, the nephew and designated successor of Tiberius, Caligula&#039;s father, Claudius&#039; brother, and Nero&#039;s grandfather. </font></p><p><font size="4"><br /></font></p><p><font size="4">As part of the arrangements for Augustus&#039; succession, Germanicus was adopted by Tiberius in 4 AD. Thus, he became the heir apparent to the imperial throne. His political career was fostered by Augustus, who arranged for him to become <i>quaestor</i> in 7 AD and gave him a subcommand under Tiberius in the Batonian War. In the following years, Germanicus proved an able general, and was given command of the Rhine troops in 13 AD. </font></p><p><font size="4"><br /></font></p><p><font size="4">Tasked with avenging the defeat in the Teutoburg Forest, Germanicus campaigned in Germania Magna from 14 AD to 17 AD. Although he won several battles, took Arminius&#039; wife captive, brought back two of the lost legionary eagles, and pillaged the western Germanic countryside, the military outcome of Germanicus&#039; campaigns was indecisive. Roman casualties apparently had been enormous, and Arminius resistance was unbroken. Ultimately, a possible conquest of Germany was deemed too costly. Tiberius recalled his general. Although he still celebrated a triumph in Rome, Germanicus&#039; campaigns mark the end of an offensive Roman military strategy in Germania Magna. </font></p><p><font size="4"><br /></font></p><p><font size="4">Immensely popular with the Roman people, Germanicus was granted proconsular command of the eaast in 18 AD. In a relatively peaceful transition of power, he turned the formerly independent client kingdoms Cappadocia and Commagene into Roman provinces. In January 19 AD, he paid a visit to the critically important province of Egypt, apparently without Tiberius&#039; explicit permission. Upon his return to Antioch, Germanicus fell ill and died soon after. The governor of Syria, Gnaeus Calpurnius Piso, was accused of having poisoned the imperial heir. Yet, the cause and circumstances of Germanicus&#039; death remain unclear.</font></p><p><font size="4"><br /></font></p><p><font size="4">During his lifetime, no imperial coins were struck for Germanicus. (There are a few provincial issues associated with him, though.) After his death, both Caligula and Claudius minted coins showing the portrait of their father and brother. Some decades later, the Flavian &quot;restoration&quot; issues under Titus and Domitian reproduced these earlier types. My example was struck under Claudius.</font></p><p><br /></p><p><font size="4"><b>Please show your coins of Germanicus and his family!</b></font>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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