DOMITIANUS - IMPXXII COS XIV

IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P XIII, laureate head right / IMP XXII COS XVI CENS P P P / Minerva standing right on prow with sheild & spear, owl before. RSC 284.

A second Domitian for the collection. Fine portrait and elegant Minerva on reverse. Minerva was a very important divinity in Rome who was second in importance only to Jupiter and Juno. She was considered to be the goddess of wisdom and reason, war and peace. She was highly admired by Domitian and appears frequently on his coinage.

Joannus dixit.

------------------------------------------------------------------

Titus Flavius Domitianus was the younger son of Vespasian and brother of Titus born in AD 51. Upon the death of Vitellius he was saluted as Caesar and was head of affairs in Rome until Vespasian’s return. Domitian succeeded Titus as emperor in 81 and was an absolute and cruel ruler. He held the consulship ten times during his reign and around 84 or 85 he became censor for life which allowed him to directly control who made up the Senate and took away the little power which the Senate had left in Roman matters. He also decreased the power of the Senate by allowing distinguished equestrians and provincials into its membership. He increased the pay of legionary soldiers and contributed large sums of money to public works such as the temple of Jupiter on the Capital which caused taxes to increase and their collection to be very thorough. Domitian was highly concerned with the morality of the state and was severe in enforcing laws against immorality. In 83 he had three Vestal Virgins executed for immorality and had the chief Vestal condemned to be buried alive in 90. As a result of his extreme measures Domitian became very unpopular and numerous conspiracies developed against his life. To curb these plots, Domitian had many people executed, but this did not stop attempts to remove him from power. Finally, a plot which involved his wife Domitia succeeded and Domitian was murdered on September 18, 96. (Source - http://www.usask.ca/).