Felix — a freedman of the imperial household appointed procurator of Judaea around 52 AD — issued this bronze in the name of Claudius in the emperor's final year. The appointment was controversial from the start; Tacitus wrote that Felix "practised every kind of cruelty and lust, wielding the power of a king with all the instincts of a slave." He held the post through Nero's accession and well into the 60s, presiding over escalating civil unrest that would eventually ignite the Jewish revolt of 66 AD.
Felix — a freedman of the imperial household appointed procurator of Judaea around 52 AD — issued this bronze in the name of Claudius in the emperor's final year. The appointment was controversial from the start; Tacitus wrote that Felix "practised every kind of cruelty and lust, wielding the power of a king with all the instincts of a slave." He held the post through Nero's accession and well into the 60s, presiding over escalating civil unrest that would eventually ignite the Jewish revolt of 66 AD.