Obverse: IMP TITVS CAES VESPASIANVS AVG PM;
Laureate Bust of the Emperor Facing Right
Reverse: TR P IX IMP XV COS VIII PP; A
Thunderbolt Laid on a Draped Table, Referring to
the God Jupiter
Many unfortunate disasters occurred in the
Roman Empire during the reign of Titus. An
epidemic of plague swept the empire, fire burned
in Rome for three days, and Mount Vesuvius
erupted on the Bay of Naples, burying Pompeii
and Herculaneum and killing thousands of
people. Much of Titus’ reign is marked with his
acts of kindness in trying to ease the suffering of
his unfortunate people. Titus succeeded his
father as emperor after his death. He had been
Caesar under his father Vespasian during the last
few years of his reign and helped Vespasian to
govern wisely. Titus fell very much in love with
Berenice, the Jewish queen and sister of King
Agrippa II. Together, Agrippa and Berenice ruled
parts of Palestine and Syria as client king and
queen of Rome. Though they cooperated with
the Romans, some of their subjects did not,
starting a bloody rebellion that ultimately led to
the destruction of Jerusalem and the Temple.
Most of the Roman citizens sharply disapproved
of the affair between an heir to the throne and a
foreign queen, much as they had when Julius
Caesar and Marc Antony had tried to make
Cleopatra their queen. Sadly, Titus sent his one
true love back to Jerusalem in order that he
might not offend Roman society. The
Colosseum, or Flavian Amphitheater, was
completed during the reign of Titus. Titus died
from a short illness after having reigned two
years and two months. There was a rumor that
his brother Domitian poisoned him, but there is
no real evidence to support the accusation.
How many hands have touched a coin in your
pocket or purse? What eras and lands have the
coin traversed on its journey into our
possession? As we reach into our pockets to pull
out some change, we rarely hesitate to think of
who might have touched the coin before us, or
where the coin will venture to after it leaves our
hands. More than money, coins are a symbol of
the state that struck them, of a specific time and
location, whether contemporary currencies or
artifacts of a long forgotten empire. This
stunning hand-struck coin reveals an expertise
of craftsmanship and intricate sculptural detail
that is often lacking in contemporary machine-
made currencies. This coin more than
commemorates an individual leader, instead it is
a glorious memorial to an entire ancient empire
passed from the hands of civilization to
civilization, from generation to generation.
- (C.4587)
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