Volusian, AR Antoninianus, Antioch.. AD 251-253. 22 mm, 4,30 g IMP C V AF GAL VEND VOLVSIANO AVG, radiate, draped, cuirassed bust right, three dots beneath bust / ADVENTVS AVG, Volusian on horseback, riding left, holding spear and raising right hand. RIC IV 224a; RSC 2a.
The way that I categorize them, Volusian is in the "Not quite Emperor" group. But emperor or not, I like having his coin
Yes, the word ADVENTVS on the reverse was almost exclusively used for Emperors. And he was briefly co-emperor after Hostilianus was killed. I also have his Father. Gaius Vibius Trebonianus Gallus. AE Sestertius, Rome, AD 251-252 IMP CAES C VIBIVS TREBONIANVS GALLVS AVG, laureate, draped bust right / PIETAS AVGG, S-C, Pietas standing facing before lit altar, raising both hands. RIC 117a; Cohen 86; Sear 9676. 23.15g. 28x31mm
ADVENTVS types were mostly used for Augusti and simply meant arrival; so the type celebrated the arrival of the Emperor to the city.
I'm certainly not arguing that he wasn't technically an emperor, as the criteria that historians tend to use does put him in that category. I'm just saying that according to the way that I personally distinguish the list, he doesn't quite make the grade. Until the Tetrarchy or splitting the Empire into East and West, I don't always count the "Junior" in cases of Co-Emperors. Especially in the case where an Emperor father appoints a son as such. In this case, there is clearly a hierarchy within the emperorship. Valusian died in battle along with his father while being defeated by Aemilian, therefore, he never achieved a state where he was "The Person" in charge.... and thus, not Emperor. Interestingly, most people count Aemilian as an Emperor for a short time in 253, but I do not. He was a usurper that got close, but not quite close enough. My list goes Treb Gallus -> Valerian. Then there are the edge cases. I do count Lucius Verus as an Emperor, even though Marcus Aurelius was clearly the superior. All about personal opinion I guess .
Right, and if Senate proclamation is the criteria, then he definitely fits the bill. But, he was killed by his own men before he ever even made it to Rome. Aside from name for a brief time, what influence did he have over anything as Emperor? Probably little to nothing. That's why I don't count him as an Emperor in the way that I organize my collection. It's not a matter of correct or incorrect, just personal preference/opinion.
An observation from a historically ignorant individual here, but he did ascend to prominence long enough to be featured on a coin. That is significant, no? Z
Antoninianus of Volusian, Obverse: IMP CAE C VIB VOLVSIANO AVG “Emperor caesar Gaius Vibius Volusianus augustus.” Reverse: P M TR P IIII COS II Volusian, togate standing, sacrificing from a patera over a tripod altar, holding a short scepter. Sear 9763 Here are the history bullets from my notebook: · Gaius Vibius Afinius Gallas Vendumnianus Volusianus was the son of Trebonianus Gallas and Baebiana. Soon after his father came to power, Volusian was given the junior rank of caesar. The rank of co-emperor went to Hostilian who was the surviving son of Trajan Decias. · Hostilian died of the plague three or four months after he became emperor. Upon his death, Volusian was promoted to co-emperor. This probably averted a violent confrontation between the two young men. · During the co reigns of Trebonianus Gallus and Volusian, the Goths and Sassanids invaded the Roman Empire. Both co-emperors chose to stay in Rome rather confront the invaders themselves. · The Sassanids overran Mesopotamia and defeated the Romans at the battle of Barbalissos in the province of Euphratenis which is modern day Syria. They advanced as far as Antioch and captured the city after a siege. · The Goths invaded Moesia Inferior. The new governor, Aemilian, refused to pay tribute to them. The Goths split into two bands. One attacked the cities of Moesia Inferior and Thracia while the other crossed into Asia Minor as far as Ephesus. · Aemilian repelled the Goths killing many of them in the process. His forces forced them back across the Danube. · Aemilian’s soldiers declared him emperor in opposition to Trebonianus Gallus and Volusian. They began to march on Rome. · The future emperor, Valerian, who was defending Rome along the Rhine, heard about Aemilian’s advance and sent troops to aid the emperors, but they did not reach Rome on time. · The emperors mustered what troops they could and prepared to defend the city. Noting the size of Aemilian’s forces, the troops turned on the emperors and killed them. This turn of events occurred in less than two years. Hostoillian who died of the plague. Antoninianus of Hostilian, Obverse: C VALENS HOSTIL MES QVINTVS N C, “Gainus Valens Hostilianus Messius Quintus noble caesar.” (Nobilissimus Caesar) (Reverse: PRINCIPI IVVENTVTIS, “The prince of the youth.” Hostilian in military dress holding a standard and resting on a spear. Sear 9561 · Gainus Valens Hostilianus Messius Quintus was the younger son of Trajan Decius and Herennia Etruscilla. When Trajan Decius and Herennius Etruscus left to fight the Goths, Hostilian was left in Rome. After they were killed in battle, Hostilian was the last surviving male member of the imperial family. · The new emperor, Trebonianus Gallus, raised Hostilian to the rank of augustus and emperor, leaving his son, Volusian with the lesser rank of caesar. · Hostilian caught and died of the plague which was raging through Rome. Volusian replaced him as c0-emperor. Had this not happened, there might well have been a violent confrontation between the two young men.
Not for me. He was listed in the Zander Klawans book as an emperor, so he got on my list. As the empire was falling to pieces in the 400s, I've found that those coins and the emperors who appear on them are beyond my pay grade. I could handle it from the 12 caesars to around 400 AD.
