Ancient Roman Empire - AR Denarius - Lucretius (Roma) - Circa 136 BC

Denomination: AR Denarius                                                                                  

Date: Circa 116-115 BCE

Mint: Rome                                                                                                     

Grade: Very Fine

Weight: 3.79 grams

Mount: Sterling Silver frame with 14K prongs

Description: Q. Critics and M Sergius Silus. Rome. Obverse: Helmeted head of Roma to right; X (mark of value) to left. Reverse: Jupiter driving galloping quaddriga right, hurling thunderbolt and holding Scepter. Lituus above.

History:  In ancient Roman religion, Roma was a female deity who personified the city of Rome and more broadly, the Roman state. She was created and promoted to represent and propagate certain of Rome's ideas about itself, and to justify its rule. She was portrayed on coins, sculptures, architectural designs, and at official games and festivals. Images of Roma had elements in common with other goddesses, such as Rome's Minerva, her Greek equivalent Athena, and various manifestations of Greek Tyche, who protected Greek city-states; among these, Roma stands dominant, over piled weapons that represent her conquests, and promising protection to the obedient. Her "Amazonian" iconography shows her "manly virtue" (Virtus) as fierce mother of a warrior race, augmenting rather than replacing local goddesses. On some coinage of the Roman Imperial era, she is shown as a serene advisor, partner, and protector of ruling emperors. In Rome, the Emperor Hadrian built and dedicated a gigantic temple to her as Roma Aeterna ("Eternal Rome"), and to Venus Felix, ("Venus the Bringer of Good Fortune"), emphasizing the sacred, universal and eternal nature of the empire.

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