Julian II, 361-363 AD. AR Siliqua, Lugdunum, 360 AD. Obv. FL CL IVLIA-NVS PF AVG · Julian II, beardless, pearl-diademed, draped, cuirassed bust right. Rev. VOTIS / V / MVLTIS / X · within wreath. Exergue. Mintmark LVG. RIC VIII 218. Julian II, a capable military commander and distinguished philosopher, was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire, who attempted to reform the state bureaucracy and restore Rome’s pagan past. He first rose to prominence in 355, when he was appointed to the position of Caesar by Constantius II and sent to Gaul as the emperor’s representative. His successful campaigns against the Franks and Alamanni endeared him to his troops but aroused Constantius’s jealousy and paranoia. In early 360, Constantius ordered Julian to send a contingent of his army to the East, ostensibly to defend against the incursions of the Sasanian king Shapur II, but in truth to weaken the popular Julian as a threat to power. In response, Julian’s troops proclaimed him Augustus, lighting the first sparks of a potential civil war with the sitting emperor. Julian began using the title Augustus from then onwards, minting coins in Gaul bearing the inscription AVG rather than CAES. In November of 360, Julian celebrated the five year anniversary of his appointment as Caesar, which he used to mark the beginning of his rule. The coin pictured above is of a type commemorating this event, with the inscription VOTIS V MVLTIS X being short for votis quinquennalibus multis decennalibus, or “vows for five years of rule and for five years more.” Coinage celebrating these anniversaries were typically minted for up to a year before the anniversary until the date of the anniversary, allowing us to tentatively date the minting of this coin, with both the inscriptions AVG and VOTIS V, from between early 360 to November 360. However, Julian would not live to see his tenth anniversary as emperor, being mortally wounded in 363 while on campaign in the East.
JULIAN II Siliqua OBVERSE: FL CL IVLIA-NVS PP AVG, rosette-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right REVERSE: VOTIS V MVLTIS X in four lines within wreath. Mintmark SLVG Struck at Lyons 360-363 A.D 1.7g, 16mm RIC VIII Lyons 227 var (bust type); RSC 163b var (ditto); Sear 4071 var (ditto).
Here's the best of my Julian II Apis bull types. Julian II AE1 “Double Maiorina” (29mm, 8.2g), struck in Nicomedia, 361-3 AD. Obverse: DN FL CL IVLIANVS PF AVG. Pearl-diademed, draped & cuirassed bearded bust right. Reverse: SECVRITAS REIPVB. Bull standing right, two stars above. Exergue: palm-NIKB-palm. Reference: RIC 121. I like this type partly because (as I've previously commented, slightly edited here): It seems Julian II was not a particularly well-liked figure in his time and today is seen as rather mysterious. This coin’s claim to fame is that its significance is uncertain: Julian is known as the last pagan emperor of Rome, and this is the only coin to represent his religious sentiments, yet we don’t know exactly what he intended. The meaning (not unlike the religious symbolism of Constantine’s coins) is a matter of continuing debate, but more remarkably, quite exceptionally, in fact, for any Roman Imperial bronze coin, it is known to have already been a matter of contention and repeated public comment in Julian’s time. Though Julian was clearly returning pagan symbolism to Roman coins (Constantine having brought about a shift to Christian iconography three decades earlier), it is unclear exactly what significance to assign the bull: the astrological sign Taurus, a representation of Mithras, or Helios, or, as often suggested today, the Apis Bull derived from Egyptian religion. The mystery derives from the varied meanings held by the bull in European, Ancient Near East and Mediterranean religions, wherein it had been a potent symbol (pardon the pun) since at least the Bronze Age. Julian’s bull coinage is often noted for having been referenced in at least 3-4 classical sources known today. Most seem to have a disparaging tone (partly due to at least two authors writing histories intentionally biased in favor of the Christian church). At least some of his Provincial subjects were hostile to the design, citizens of Antioch reportedly complaining, with reference to this coin: “…the bull, which was impressed upon his coin, was a symbol of his having desolated the world. For the emperor, being excessively superstitious, was continually sacrificing bulls on the altars of his idols, and had ordered the impression of a bull and altar to be made on his coin.” The Ecclesiastical History of Socrates Scholasticus Other interesting discussions: https://www.cointalk.com/threads/julian-and-the-apis-bull.324642/ https://www.ancientworldmagazine.com/articles/taking-bull-horns-julians-controversial-coinage/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julian_(emperor) On literary evidence, see also Ellithorpe (2017) Dissertation: Circulating Imperial Ideology
