TRAJAN DECIUS 250AD Big Very Rare Ancient Roman Coin Pannoniae province i42234

Description: Item: i42234 Authentic Ancient Coin of: Trajan Decius - Roman Emperor: 249-251 A.D. - Bronze As 25mm (10.36 grams) Struck circa 250-251 A.D. Reference: RIC 124b; Cohen 88; Sear 9429. IMP C M Q TRAIANVS DECIVS AVG, laureate, cuirassed bust right, seen from the back PANNONIAE, The two Pannonia standing, each holding a standard. S-C across fields. You are bidding on the exact item pictured, provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity. Standards Roman military standards. The standards with discs, or signa (first three on left) belong to centuriae of the legion (the image does not show the heads of the standards - whether spear-head or wreathed-palm). Note (second from right) the legion's aquila . The standard on the extreme right probably portrays the She-wolf (lupa) which fed Romulus , the legendary founder of Rome. (This was the emblem of Legio VI Ferrata , a legion then based in Judaea , a detachment of which is known to have fought in Dacia). Detail from Trajan's Column, Rome Modern reenactors parade with replicas of various legionary standards. From left to right: signum (spear-head type), with four discs; signum (wreathed-palm type), with six discs; imago of ruling emperor; legionary aquila; vexillum of commander (legatus) of Legio XXX Ulpia Victrix , with embroidered name and emblem (Capricorn) of legion Each tactical unit in the imperial army, from centuria upwards, had its own standard. This consisted of a pole with a variety of adornments that was borne by dedicated standard-bearers who normally held the rank of duplicarius. Military standards had the practical use of communicating to unit members where the main body of the unit was situated, so that they would not be separated, in the same way that modern tour-group guides use umbrellas or flags. But military standards were also invested with a mystical quality, representing the divine spirit (genius) of the unit and were revered as such (soldiers frequently prayed before their standards). The loss of a unit's standard to the enemy was considered a terrible stain on the unit's honour, which could only be fully expunged by its recovery. The standard of a centuria was known as a signum, which was borne by the unit's signifer. It consisted of a pole topped by either an open palm of a human hand or by a spear-head. The open palm, it has been suggested, originated as a symbol of the maniple (manipulus = "handful"), the smallest tactical unit in the Roman army of the mid-Republic . The poles were adorned with two to six silver discs (the significance of which is uncertain). In addition, the pole would be adorned by a variety of cross-pieces (including, at bottom, a crescent-moon symbol and a tassel). The standard would also normally sport a cross-bar with tassels. The standard of a Praetorian cohort or an auxiliary cohort or ala was known as a vexillum or banner. This was a square flag, normally red in colour, hanging from a crossbar on the top of the pole. Stitched on the flag would be the name of the unit and/or an image of a god. An exemplar found in Egypt bears an image of the goddess Victory on a red background. The vexillum was borne by a vexillarius. A legionary detachment (vexillatio) would also have its own vexillum. Finally, a vexillum traditionally marked the commander's position on the battlefield.[194] The exception to the red colour appears to have been the Praetorian Guard, whose vexilla, similar to their clothing, favoured a blue background. From the time of Marius (consul 107 BC), the standard of all legions was the aquila ("eagle"). The pole was surmounted by a sculpted eagle of solid gold, or at least gold-plated silver, carrying thunderbolts in its claws (representing Jupiter , the highest Roman god. Otherwise the pole was unadorned. No exemplar of a legionary eagle has ever been found (doubtless because any found in later centuries were melted down for their gold content). The eagle was borne by the aquilifer, the legion's most senior standard-bearer. So important were legionary eagles as symbols of Roman military prestige and power, that the imperial government would go to extraordinary lengths to recover those captured by the enemy. This would include launching full-scale invasions of the enemy's territory, sometimes decades after the eagles had been lost e.g. the expedition in 28 BC by Marcus Licinius Crassus against Genucla (Isaccea, near modern Tulcea , Rom., in the Danube delta region), a fortress of the Getae , to recover standards lost 33 years earlier by Gaius Antonius , an earlier proconsul of Macedonia . Or the campaigns of AD 14-17 to recover the three eagles lost by Varus in AD 6 in the Teutoburg Forest . Under Augustus, it became the practice for legions to carry portraits (imagines) of the ruling emperor and his immediate family members. An imago was usually a bronze bust carried on top of a pole like a standard by an imaginifer. From around the time of Hadrian (r. 117-38), some auxiliary alae adopted the dragon-standard (draco) commonly carried by Sarmatian cavalry squadrons. This was a long cloth wind-sock attached to an ornate sculpture of an open dragon's mouth. When the bearer (draconarius) was galloping, it would make a strong hissing-sound. Decorations The Roman army awarded a variety of individual decorations (dona) for valour to its legionaries. Hasta pura was a miniature spear; phalerae were large medal-like bronze or silver discs worn on the cuirass; armillae were bracelets worn on the wrist; and torques were worn round the neck, or on the cuirass. The highest awards were the coronae ("crowns"), of which the most prestigious was the corona civica, a crown made oak-leaves awarded for saving the life of a fellow Roman citizen in battle. The most valuable award was the corona muralis, a crown made of gold awarded to the first man to scale an enemy rampart. This was awarded rarely, as such a man hardly ever survived. There is no evidence that auxiliary common soldiers received individual decorations like legionaries, although auxiliary officers did. Instead, the whole regiment was honoured by a title reflecting the type of award e.g. torquata ("awarded a torque") or armillata ("awarded bracelets"). Some regiments would, in the course of time, accumulate a long list of titles and decorations e.g. cohors I Brittonum Ulpia torquata pia fidelis c.R.. Pannonia was an ancient province of the Roman Empire bounded north and east by the Danube , coterminous westward with Noricum and upper Italy , and southward with Dalmatia and upper Moesia . Pannonia was located over the territory of the present-day western Hungary , eastern Austria , northern Croatia , north-western Serbia , Slovenia , western Slovakia and northern Bosnia and Herzegovina . Julius Pokorny derived the name Pannonia from Illyrian , from the Proto-Indo-European root *pen-, "swamp, water, wet" (cf. English fen, "marsh"; Hindi pani, "water"). History Further information: Prehistoric Hungary , Prehistoric Croatia, Prehistoric Serbia, Prehistoric Slovenia, Prehistoric Bosnia and Herzegovina, Prehistoric Austria, and Prehistoric Slovakia The first inhabitants of this area known to history were the Pannonii (Pannonians), a group of Indo-European tribes akin to Illyrians . From the 4th century BC it was invaded by various Celtic tribes. Little is heard of Pannonia until 35 BC, when its inhabitants, allies of the Dalmatians , were attacked by Augustus , who conquered and occupied Siscia (Sisak). The country was not, however, definitely subdued by the Romans until 9 BC, when it was incorporated into Illyricum , the frontier of which was thus extended as far as the Danube. In AD 6, the Pannonians, with the Dalmatians and other Illyrian tribes, engaged in the so-called Great Illyrian Revolt , and were overcome by Tiberius and Germanicus , after a hard-fought campaign which lasted for three years. After the rebellion was crushed in AD 9, the province of Illyricum was dissolved, and its lands were divided between the new provinces of Pannonia in the north and Dalmatia in the south. The date of the division is unknown, most certainly after AD 20 but before AD 50. The proximity of dangerous barbarian tribes (Quadi, Marcomanni ) necessitated the presence of a large number of troops (seven legions in later times), and numerous fortresses were built on the bank of the Danube. Some time between the years 102 and 107, between the first and second Dacian war, Trajan divided the province into Pannonia Superior (western part with the capital Carnuntum ), and Pannonia Inferior (eastern part with the capitals in Aquincum and Sirmium [8]). According to Ptolemy , these divisions were separated by a line drawn from Arrabona in the north to Servitium in the south; later, the boundary was placed further east. The whole country was sometimes called the Pannonias (Pannoniae). Pannonia Superior was under the consular legate, who had formerly administered the single province, and had three legions under his control; Pannonia Inferior at first under a praetorian legate with a single legion as garrison, after Marcus Aurelius under a consular legate, still with only one legion. The frontier on the Danube was protected by the establishment of the two colonies Aelia Mursia and Aelia Aquincum by Hadrian . Under Diocletian a fourfold division of the country was made: Pannonia Prima in the northwest, with capital in Savaria / Sabaria , Pannonia Valeria in the northeast, with capital in Sopianae , Pannonia Savia in the southwest, with capital in Siscia , Pannonia Secunda in the southeast, with capital in Sirmium Diocletian also moved parts of today's Slovenia out of Pannonia and incorporated them in Noricum . Constantine I enlarged in 324 AD the borders of Roman Pannonia to the east, annexing the plains of what is now eastern Hungary, northern Serbia and western Romania up to the limes that he created: the Devil's Dykes . In the 4th-5th century, one of the dioceses of the Roman Empire was known as the Diocese of Pannonia . It had capital in Sirmium and included all four provinces that were formed from historical Pannonia, as well as provinces of Dalmatia , Noricum Mediterraneum and Noricum Ripensis . In the middle of the 5th century, Pannonia was ceded to the Huns by Theodosius II , and after the death of Attila successively passed (entirely or partially) into the hands of the Ostrogoths (456–6th century), Lombards (530–68), Gepids (6th century), Byzantine Empire (6th century and 11th-12th century), Avars (560s – c.800), various Slavic states (Slavs living there since c. 480s; independent since 7th century), Franks (8th-9th century), Magyars (since 900/901), Holy Roman Empire (since 10th century), Habsburgs (since 14th century), Ottomans (since 1512; the Ottoman administration ended in 1878) and Serbia (since 19th century). After the First World War , the region was divided between Austria , Hungary the Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes (renamed to Yugoslavia in 1929) and Czechoslovakia . During the first period of Byzantine administration in the 6th century, province named Pannonia (with capital in Sirmium ) was temporarily restored, but it included only small south-eastern part of historical Pannonia. In the second period of Byzantine administration (11th century) an province named Theme of Sirmium (also with capital in Sirmium ) was established in this same area. An Frankish frontier march named March of Pannonia was established in the end of the 8th century, while terms Lower and Upper Pannonia were also used in the 9th century as a designations for an Slavic principality and an Frankish province . Furthermore, between the 5th and the 10th century the romanized population of Pannonia developed the Romance Pannonian Language , mainly around the lake Balaton in present-day western Hungary, where there was the keszthely culture . This language and the related culture were extinct with the arrival of the Magyars . Gaius Messius Quintus Decius (ca. 201- June 251) was the Emperor of Rome from 249 to 251. In the last year of his reign, he co-ruled with his son Herennius Etruscus until both of them were killed in the Battle of Abrittus . // Early life and rise to power Decius, who was born at Budalia , now Martinci , Serbia near Sirmium (Sremska Mitrovica), in Lower Pannonia was one of the first among a long succession of future Roman Emperors to originate from the provinces of Illyria in the Danube.[1]. Unlike some of his immediate imperial predecessors such as Philip the Arab or Maximinus , Decius was a distinguished senator who had served as consul in 232, had been governor of Moesia and Germania Inferior soon afterwards, served as governor of Hispania Tarraconensis between 235-238, and was urban prefect of Rome during the early reign of Emperor Philip the Arab (Marcus Iulius Phillipus). Around 245, Emperor Philip entrusted Decius with an important command on the Danube . By the end of 248 or 249, Decius was sent to quell the revolt of Pacatianus and his troops in Moesia and Pannonia[3]; the soldiers were enraged because of the peace treaty signed between Philip and the Sassanids . Once arrived, the troops forced Decius to assume the imperial dignity himself instead. Decius still protested his loyalty to Philip, but the latter advanced against him and was killed near Verona , Italy . The Senate then recognized Decius as Emperor, giving him the attribute Traianus as a reference to the good emperor Trajan . As the Byzantine historian Zosimus later noted: Decius was therefore clothed in purple and forced to undertake the [burdens of] government, despite his reluctance and unwillingness. Political and monumental initiatives Decius' political program was focused on the restoration of the strength of the State, both military opposing the external threats, and restoring the public piety with a program of renovation of the State religion . Either as a concession to the Senate, or perhaps with the idea of improving public morality, Decius endeavoured to revive the separate office and authority of the censor . The choice was left to the Senate, who unanimously selected Valerian (afterwards emperor). But Valerian, well aware of the dangers and difficulties attaching to the office at such a time, declined the responsibility. The invasion of the Goths and Decius' death put an end to the abortive attempt. During his reign, he proceeded to construct several building projects in Rome "including the Thermae Deciane or Baths of Decius on the Aventine" which was completed in 252 and still survived through to the 16th century ; Decius also acted to repair the Colosseum, which had been damaged by lightning strikes. Persecution of Christians Main article: Decian persecution In January 250, Decius issued an edict for the suppression of Christianity . The edict itself was fairly clear: All the inhabitants of the empire were required to sacrifice before the magistrates of their community 'for the safety of the empire' by a certain day (the date would vary from place to place and the order may have been that the sacrifice had to be completed within a specified period after a community received the edict). When they sacrificed they would obtain a certificate (libellus) recording the fact that they had complied with the order. While Decius himself may have intended the edict as a way to reaffirm his conservative vision of the Pax Romana and to reassure Rome's citizens that the empire was still secure, it nevertheless sparked a "terrible crisis of authority as various [Christian] bishops and their flocks reacted to it in different ways." Measures were first taken demanding that the bishops and officers of the church make a sacrifice for the Emperor, a matter of an oath of allegiance that Christians considered offensive. Certificates were issued to those who satisfied the pagan commissioners during the persecution of Christians under Decius. Forty-six such certificates have been published, all dating from 250, four of them from Oxyrhynchus . Christian followers who refused to offer a pagan sacrifice for the Emperor and the Empire's well-being by a specified date risked torture and execution. A number of prominent Christians did, in fact, refuse to make a sacrifice and were killed in the process including Pope Fabian himself in 250 and "anti-Christian feeling[s] led to pogroms at Carthage and Alexandria." In reality, however, towards the end of the second year of Decius' reign, "the ferocity of the [anti-Christian] persecution had eased off, and the earlier tradition of tolerance had begun to reassert itself." The Christian church though never forgot the reign of Decius whom they labelled as that "fierce tyrant". At this time, there was a second outbreak of the Antonine Plague , which at its height in 251 to 266 took the lives of 5,000 a day in Rome. This outbreak is referred to as the "Plague of Cyprian " (the bishop of Carthage ), where both the plague and the persecution of Christians were especially severe. Cyprian's biographer Pontius gave a vivid picture of the demoralizing effects of the plague and Cyprian moralized the event in his essay De mortalitate. In Carthage the "Decian persecution" unleashed at the onset of the plague sought out Christian scapegoats. Decius' edicts were renewed under Valerius in 253 and repealed under his son, Gallienus , in 260-1. Military actions and death The barbarian incursions into the Empire were becoming more and more daring and frequent whereas the Empire was facing a serious economic crisis in Decius' time. During his brief reign, Decius engaged in important operations against the Goths , who crossed the Danube to raid districts of Moesia and Thrace . This is the first considerable occasion the Goths — who would later come to play such an important role — appear in the historical record. The Goths under King Cniva were surprised by the emperor while besieging Nicopolis on the Danube; the Goths fled through the difficult terrain of the Balkans , but then doubled back and surprised the Romans near Beroë (modern Stara Zagora ), sacking their camp and dispersing the Roman troops. It was the first time a Roman emperor fled in the face of Barbarians. The Goths then moved to Philippopolis attack (modern Plovdiv ), which fell into their hands. The governor of Thrace, Titus Julius Priscus , declared himself Emperor under Gothic protection in opposition to Decius but Priscus's challenge was rendered moot when he was killed soon afterwards. The siege of Philippopolis had so exhausted the numbers and resources of the Goths that they offered to surrender their treasure and prisoners, on condition of being allowed to retire.[ neededcitation] Decius, who had succeeded in surrounding them and hoped to cut off their retreat, refused to entertain their proposals. The final engagement, in which the Goths fought with the courage of despair, under the command of Cniva, took place during the second week of June 251 on swampy ground in the Ludogorie (region in northeastern Bulgaria which merges with Dobruja plateau and the Danube Plain to the north) near the small settlement of Abrittus or Forum Terebronii (modern Razgrad ): see Battle of Abrittus . Jordanes records that Decius' son Herennius Etruscus was killed by an arrow early in the battle, and to cheer his men Decius exclaimed, "Let no one mourn; the death of one soldier is not a great loss to the republic." Nevertheless, Decius' army was entangled in the swamp and annihilated in this battle, while he himself was killed on the field of battle. As the historian Aurelius Victor relates: The Decii (ie. Decius), while pursuing the barbarians across the Danube, died through treachery at Abrittus after reigning two years....Very many report that the son had fallen in battle while pressing an attack too boldly; that the father however, has strenuously asserted that the loss of one soldier seemed to him too little to matter. And so he resumed the war and died in a similar manner while fighting vigorously. One literary tradition claims that Decius was betrayed by his successor Trebonianus Gallus , who was involved in a secret alliance with the Goths but this cannot be substantiated and was most likely a later invention since Gallus felt compelled to adopt Decius' younger son, Gaius Valens Hostilianus, as joint emperor even though the latter was too young to rule in his own right. It is also unlikely that the shattered Roman legions would proclaim as emperor a traitor who was responsible for the loss of so many soldiers from their ranks. Decius was the first Roman emperor to die in battle against a foreign enemy. <="" span=""> <="" span=""> <="" span=""> Frequently Asked Questions How long until my order is shipped? Depending on the volume of sales, it may take up to 5 business days for shipment of your order after the receipt of payment. How will I know when the order was shipped? After your order has shipped, you will be left positive feedback, and that date should be used as a basis of estimating an arrival date. After you shipped the order, how long will the mail take? USPS First Class mail takes about 3-5 business days to arrive in the U.S., international shipping times cannot be estimated as they vary from country to country. I am not responsible for any USPS delivery delays, especially for an international package. 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Price: 248.5 USD

Location: Rego Park, New York

End Time: 2024-12-07T00:40:14.000Z

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