Vespasian augustus, 69 – 79. Aureus 77-78, AV 19 mm, 7.35 g. IMP CAESAR – VESPASIANVS AVG Laureate head r. Rev. Vespasian standing l., holding long sceptre in r. hand and parazonium in l., crowned by Victory standing l. behind him, holding palm in l. hand; in exergue, COS VIII. C 130. BMC 204. RIC 935. CBN 181. Calicó 624a. A magnificent portrait of superb style and a wonderful reddish tone. Virtually as struck and almost FdcGraded Ch AU, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 4/5, NGC photo certificate number 6711260-004 Ex Sternberg XV, 1985, 361; Stack's 3 December 1996, M. F. Price, 147; Leu 72, 1998, 423; Triton XVIII, 2015, 1048; NAC 150, 2024, 812 and Nomos 17, 2018, 238 sales. From the collection of the Money Museum. This exquisite gold aureus was struck in the year of Vespasian’s eighth consulship (AD 77-78), perhaps for distribution as largesse when he took up the magistracy in January 77. Although his victory in the Year of the Four Emperors (AD 69) that brought him to power and the triumphant conclusion of the Jewish War (AD 66–71) were increasingly far in the past, even late in his reign, Vespasian still made a point of constantly placing his victories before the eyes of the Romans in order to maintain the image of legitimacy for the Flavian dynasty. Whereas the Julio-Claudian dynasty, which ended with Nero and the Year of the Four Emperors, was considered legitimate through its familial relationship with Augustus, the first Roman emperor, Vespasian had no connection to the original imperial household. Instead, he was a career military man of the equestrian class who gained the consulship in AD 51, but then retired after inspiring the anger of Agrippina, the wife of Claudius. He came out of retirement to govern the Roman province of Africa in 63. While serving at this post, he amassed a fortune from his involvement in the mule trade, for which he was often derided as “the muleteer.” Although Vespasian offended Nero by falling asleep during one of his lyrical performances, he was dispatched to the east to repress the Jewish Revolt in 68. Vespasian’s background provided him with little that he could use to establish himself as a legitimate ruler in the line of Augustus, and so, like any good general, he simply worked with what he had and used victory as the basis for his legitimacy. After all, who would not want their ruler to be a favorite of Victory? Suetonius notes that when Vespasian assumed imperial power, he was lacking in auctoritas and maiestas. He spent the entirety of his reign appealing to Victory in order to make up for this shortfall. It has been estimated that out of all the coins struck by Vespasian during his ten-year reign, at least a third of the types were devoted to themes of victory in some way. While Vespasian’s victory types frequently allude to the Jewish War, specifically, more general reverse types were also employed, as on the present piece. Here, the emperor appears in his military attire, holding a sceptre and a parazonium in a pose suspiciously similar to that of Virtus, the Roman personification of valor, while Victory crowns him from behind. Please find here the video of the coin