The largest Roman gold coin, a medallion of the emperor Libius Severus

Gold medallion of Libius Severus

Technically this is not a coin, but a medallion. Nevertheless, it has the record of being the largest Roman piece minted in gold that has survived to this day. There was another even larger medallion of the emperor Justinian, but it was stolen and molten in the 19th century.

The splendor of this gold medallion hides the unexpected story of a weak emperor that was only a puppet in the hands of a powerful general of Germanic origin, Ricimer, the true power behind the throne of the Western Roman Empire.

An empire in crisis and a puppet emperor

By the middle of the 5th century A.D., the situation of the Roman Empire differed radically from that of earlier times. It was de facto divided into two states, the Eastern Empire with capital in Constantinople and the Western Empire with capital in Ravenna. The former faced a difficult situation, but the latter was immersed in a deep crisis that threatened its very survival, with large tracts of its territory under the control of Germanic Kings.

After the emperor Majorian was executed by the Master of Soldiers Ricimer on August 461, the western throne lay vacant for several months. His barbarian origin made it impossible for Ricimer to ascend the imperial throne himself. Thus, at his instigation, the Roman senate proclaimed Libius Severus emperor. He was a complete nonentity destined to fulfill only a symbolic role while Ricimer held firmly the reins of power in his hands. Severus should take care of the relationship with the Italian elites and the Christian church, without interfering with the real exercise of power.

It was probably to mark the occasion of Severus’ coronation at Ravenna that this huge gold medallion was minted, a multiple of 12 solidi (53.62 gr.), with a diameter of 52 mm.

solidus of Libius Severus

The obverse and reverse types

On the obverse we find the legend DN LIBIVS SEVE-RVS AVG (Dominus Noster Libius Severus Augustus) and a bust of the emperor with the head to the right and the body in three-quarter profile. An oversized eye occupies a large part of his face. The emperor wears armor and a military cloak attached with a large clasp on the right shoulder. He wears a headband adorned with a large rosette in the center consisting of a broad band divided into square fields, each with a large circular dot that surely represents a jewel. Under the headband, just above the eyebrow, it is possible to see a laurel wreath.

The legend of the reverse is PI-E-TAS AVG N-OSTRI (Pietas Augusti Nostri, "the mercy of our emperor"). In the exergue, the mintmark COMOB indicates that this medallion was struck by the comitatensian mint that accompanied the imperial court. The place of minting is not indicated but it was probably Ravenna. The emperor is represented standing and looking to the left in military clothing, he holds a scepter or an inverted spear with in left hand and with the right hand he holds the hand of a kneeling female figure. On the left, another female figure in military suit presents the kneeling woman to the emperor; she holds a large round shield on her left arm. To the right, a winged Victory carries a palm branch and with her right hand places a wreath of flowers on the emperor's head.

As we can see, in the mid-fifth century Western Empire the figure of the emperor was only an empty shell with no real power. Roman numismatic art, on the other hand, had not yet lost any of its expressive potential.

How to properly handle ancient and collectible coins

As I explained in an older post, it is not recommendable to clean ancient coins, because it is very easy to unintentionally damage them in the process. Much better is not to let ancient coins get dirty in the first place! Thus it is very important to properly store and handle the coins in a collection to prevent them from suffering damage which, if accumulated over time, could lead to their value decreasing.

One of the most common mistakes when handling a coin is to simply hold it in your hand and touch its faces with your bare fingers. On the contrary, a coin should always be held by its edges, never by the faces. One of the most common ways coins are damaged is when someone touches their surface and leaves dust that can generate scratches on the surface or traces of skin oil that can corrode it.

It is very important to wash your hands thoroughly before handling ancient coins. However, even when fingers are clean, a coin should always be carefully hold by the edges trying to avoid touching its faces. If coins are regularly hold without proper caution their surface will over time show signs of wear.

 

Inadequate way to hold an ancient coin 

The ideal way of handling an ancient coin is with special cotton gloves. Of course this is not essential if the precautions mentioned in the previous paragraph are taken.

Never use latex or plastic gloves! They are not suitable for handling ancient coins because they often have dust or lubricants that can pollute or damage the surface!

It should be noted that, when wearing gloves, there is a greater risk of accidentally dropping a coin, so special care must be taken to avoid this to happen. The best is to place a thick, soft cloth under the coin while holding it, so that if it slips or falls, it will not be damaged by the impact on a hard surface. A soft cloth will also prevent it from rolling.

Ancient coins are precious relics of the past and it is our responsibility to take care of them so they can be enjoyed by future generations of collectors.