Ancient Tiberius
Æ Sestertius. AD 22-23.
CIVITATIBVS
ASIAE RESTITVTIS, Tiberius seated left on curule chair with patera and sceptre
/ TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVSTVS P M TR POT XXIIII around large SC. Weighs –
25.43 g.
Ref Tiberius
AE Sestertius, RIC 48, Cohen 3, BMC 70
Sear Roman
Coins and their Values (RCV 2000 Edition) Number 1764
Reverse translation:
“Tiberius Caesar Divi Augusti Filius Augusti Pontifex Maximus Tribunicia
Potestate vicesimum quartum”, (Tiberius Caesar son of the divine Augustus great
pontiff invested with the twenty-fourth tribunitian power).
This
sestertius is indeed made of orichalcum, from the Greek oreikhalkos, which
means brass. This metal or metallic alloy is mentioned by several ancient
authors including Pliny. The word first designated a precious metal, then alloys
such as bronze or brass. The price of a pound of orichalcum was 3 deniers under
Augustus compared to only 2 for copper. History: Tiberius, the son of Tiberius
Claudius Nero and Livia, was born on November 16, 42 BC. His father, Caesar's
lieutenant during the Alexandrian War (48-47 BC) , then rallied to Antoine.
Octavian kidnapped Livia, the mother of Tiberius, and married her in 38 BC
while she was pregnant by Nero Drusus. To further complicate the family tree of
the Julio-Claudians, Tiberius had to divorce Vipsania to marry Julie, the
daughter of Augustus, widow of Agrippa (12 BC). After choosing him as heir,
Augustus preferred his grandsons and Tiberius then went into exile in Rhodes.
After an attempted plot by Julie, Tiberius divorces her and never sees her
again. In 4, Augustus adopted Tiberius who succeeded him in 14. His reign
lasted 23 years. Germanicus, whom he did not love, died in 19. He lost his son
Drusus in 23, murdered by his wife, Livilla, with the help of the prefect of
the Praetorium, Sejanus, his lover, who retained his power until 31. Denounced
for his crimes by his sister-in-law, Antonia, Sejanus is executed. Tiberius
retired to Capri since the year 27, died, perhaps assassinated, in 37 and his
great-nephew Caligula, great-grandson of Augustus, succeeded him.