Vespasian (AD 69-79). AR denarius (18mm, 3.30 gm, 5h). Choice Fine, tooled. Rome, AD 70. IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG, laureate head of Vespasian right / COS ITER-T-R POT, Pax seated left, olive branch raised in right hand, transverse winged caduceus cradled in left arm. RIC II.1, 27. Evidence of tooling, thus ineligible for encapsulation. As the last man standing after the infamous "Year of the Four Emperors" (AD 68-69), Vespasian brought a businessman's common sense and dose of pragmatism to the imperial administration. Some of the blue-bloods grumbled about Vespasian's parsimony and his uncouth manners, but the return of stability and prosperity squelched most complaints, and his earthy sense of humor made him beloved by the common folk. His decade of rule was largely untroubled by revolts and conspiracies. Upon his death due to a sudden illness in AD 79 he was widely and sincerely mourned, and power passed smoothly to his son Titus. This denarius, struck early in his reign, gives Vespasian the rustic features of a "salt-of-the-earth" farmer, fully in keeping with the image he chose to project. The reverse celebrates the return of peace under Vespasian after the destructive Year of the Four Emperors and the successful defeat of the Jewish Revolt in Judaea. SOLD AS IS, NO RETURNS. HID09801242017 © 2024 Heritage Auctions | All Rights Reserved

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