#uranius antoninus

[corporialus]

Obscure Imperial Era Romans (That Appeared on Coins) Part I

Coin of Clodius Macer, with Galley on reverse. Clodius Macer, a high ranking military officer turned pirate, played a role in the beginnings of the civil war of 69 AD, being one of the men who first rebelled against Nero by raiding the north African coast, cutting off the food supply to the city of Rome, and generally being a pain in the ass. It's reasonable to believe that Macer wanted to become emperor, but any plans he had were cut short when Galba had him killed. His coins are extremely rare, with only a few portrait denarii surviving the test of time. he also looks goofy as hell

Coin of Uranius Anoninus, one of only three denarii known. Uranius was active in the roman city of Emesa in Syria from 253-254 AD during Shapur's attacks on the eastern provinces. Imperial aid to most of the eastern cities was lacking due to the clusterfuck of the third century, so a local priest of the god Elagabal (the same god that Elagabalus is famous for worshipping) decided to step up and lead a militia comprised of other local Emesans. This militia succeeded in their goal of defending against Shapur. The interesting is, this is one of the extremely ultra super rare occasions where someone who was put in a position of power during the third century clusterfuck didn't have strong imperial ambitions. It seems like Uranius only made coins to establish some sort of legitimacy within the area, and when the Persian threat was gone, Uranius most likely went back to being a priest. Or he died, but we'll never know

Uranius, with a temple for his favorite rock

Uranius throwing his rock a big parade

[romegreeceart]

Usurpers: Uranius Antoninus (250s CE)

Roman-Syrian mystery man who was proclaimed emperor in 253 CE. Not much is known about his life though some scholars believe that he was related to Julia Domna. Others have identified him with Sampsiceramus, a priest of Bal who helped to protect Roman border against Persians. Be that as it may Uranius Antonius vanishes from history after 254 CE.

Coin:

* Homs, 253-254

* obverse: bust of Uranius Antoninus.L IVL AVR SVLP ANTONINVS

* reverse: Quadriga and the stone of Bal (of Emesa). CONSERVATO-R AVG.

* Berlin State Museums

https://smb.museum-digital.de/index.php?t=objekt&oges=145221&cachesLoaded=true

Provenance/rights: Münzkabinett, Staatliche Museen zu Berlin - Creator: Reinhard Saczewski ; Copyright Notice;CC BY-NC-SA