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Denarius - Domitian IMP XVII COS XIIII CENS P P P, Minerva
| Issuer | Roman Imperial Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 88-89 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Minerva, helmeted and in military attire, stands facing right atop a rostral column decorated with the prow of a ship, brandishing a spear in her right hand and bearing a round shield on her left arm. An owl, Minerva's sacred bird and symbol of wisdom, perches to the right in the lower field. This reverse type is one of four principal Minerva designs employed extensively by Domitian, reflecting his personal devotion to the goddess as his divine protectress. The Latin legend, divided across the field, records his imperial acclamations, consulship, and censorial titles. |
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| Edge | Plain |
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| Additional information |
Domitian's seventeen imperatorial acclamations place this coin within the tight administrative window of late 88 into 89 AD, a period immediately following the Saturninus revolt on the Rhine — a mutiny by the legions of Upper Germany that nearly ended his reign. The suppression hardened Domitian's relationship with the Senate irreparably, accelerating the paranoid purges that would define his final years.
His insistence on the title Censor Perpetuus, embedded in the obverse legend, was constitutionally provocative. No previous emperor had claimed the censorship as a permanent personal office.