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<p>[QUOTE="Finn235, post: 5474023, member: 98035"]Trying to get caught up on recent purchases - won this one at Savoca, not fully described and missing the most important feature!</p><p><br /></p><p>Diadumenian as Augustus</p><p>c. May 16 - June 8, 218 AD</p><p>AE19 of Antioch, Syria</p><p>KAI M O ΔI ANTΩNINOC CE, Cuirassed bust right</p><p>SC within wreath, Δ above, E below[ATTACH=full]1238474[/ATTACH]</p><p><br /></p><p>The history:</p><p><br /></p><p>Diadumenian was the young son of Macrinus, only about 9 or 10 years old during his father's short reign. He was granted the title of Caesar almost immediately upon his father taking power, but he was elevated to co-Augustus with his father in mid-May 218, upon hearing news of the revolt of loyalist forces who were proclaiming the future emperor Elagabalus as the rightful heir to the purple. Perhaps sensing the gravity of the situation, Macrinus realized that elevating his son to the rank of full Augustus would give his troops a rallying point for their loyalty should he fall in battle. Macrinus was killed in the aftermath of the Battle of Antioch (8 June 218) and Diadumenian was killed while loyal soldiers were attempting to smuggle him to exile in Parthia. There is limited historical documentation around his accession, but inferring from the dates, he was likely emperor for only 3 weeks; shorter than the reigns even of Gordian I and II.</p><p><br /></p><p>Curiously, a few coins exist from the Rome mint of Diadumenian as Augustus - probably minted on orders of Macrinus via a messenger who reached Rome only shortly before the news of his defeat. These are so rare as to be unobtainable - if the collector of average means wishes to own a Diadumenian as Augustus, it is necessary to turn to provincial. Provincial titulature is not as strict as Imperial, so attribution is not devoid of guesswork. Two possibilities exist:</p><p>1) Some tetradrachms list AYT in his titles, short for Autokrator, the Greek equivalent of Imperator. Such a title is likely (but not strictly) limited to Emperors only, not their Caesars.</p><p>2) Several coins such as this one also give a CE at the end of his titles, ostensibly short for Sebastos, the Greek equivalent of Augustus.</p><p><br /></p><p>Of the above, these bronze coins from Antioch are by far the more numerable, which based on his being in the city and the dire situation, were probably an emergency propaganda issue to try to scramble local support for the "true" emperors. On my coin in particular, the bust seems awkwardly shifted up to the center of the coin, and the CE crammed in the space below it. A single issue from the nearby Hieropolis displays the same, with a less ambiguous CEB squeezed in below the bust.</p><p><br /></p><p>Anyone have other examples out there? Let's see them![/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Finn235, post: 5474023, member: 98035"]Trying to get caught up on recent purchases - won this one at Savoca, not fully described and missing the most important feature! Diadumenian as Augustus c. May 16 - June 8, 218 AD AE19 of Antioch, Syria KAI M O ΔI ANTΩNINOC CE, Cuirassed bust right SC within wreath, Δ above, E below[ATTACH=full]1238474[/ATTACH] The history: Diadumenian was the young son of Macrinus, only about 9 or 10 years old during his father's short reign. He was granted the title of Caesar almost immediately upon his father taking power, but he was elevated to co-Augustus with his father in mid-May 218, upon hearing news of the revolt of loyalist forces who were proclaiming the future emperor Elagabalus as the rightful heir to the purple. Perhaps sensing the gravity of the situation, Macrinus realized that elevating his son to the rank of full Augustus would give his troops a rallying point for their loyalty should he fall in battle. Macrinus was killed in the aftermath of the Battle of Antioch (8 June 218) and Diadumenian was killed while loyal soldiers were attempting to smuggle him to exile in Parthia. There is limited historical documentation around his accession, but inferring from the dates, he was likely emperor for only 3 weeks; shorter than the reigns even of Gordian I and II. Curiously, a few coins exist from the Rome mint of Diadumenian as Augustus - probably minted on orders of Macrinus via a messenger who reached Rome only shortly before the news of his defeat. These are so rare as to be unobtainable - if the collector of average means wishes to own a Diadumenian as Augustus, it is necessary to turn to provincial. Provincial titulature is not as strict as Imperial, so attribution is not devoid of guesswork. Two possibilities exist: 1) Some tetradrachms list AYT in his titles, short for Autokrator, the Greek equivalent of Imperator. Such a title is likely (but not strictly) limited to Emperors only, not their Caesars. 2) Several coins such as this one also give a CE at the end of his titles, ostensibly short for Sebastos, the Greek equivalent of Augustus. Of the above, these bronze coins from Antioch are by far the more numerable, which based on his being in the city and the dire situation, were probably an emergency propaganda issue to try to scramble local support for the "true" emperors. On my coin in particular, the bust seems awkwardly shifted up to the center of the coin, and the CE crammed in the space below it. A single issue from the nearby Hieropolis displays the same, with a less ambiguous CEB squeezed in below the bust. Anyone have other examples out there? Let's see them![/QUOTE]
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