ROMAN Claudius II Gothicus AD 268-270 BI Double-Denarius / Flaming Altar NGC (2)

 ROMAN EMPIRE

CERTIFIED BY NGC

Claudius II AD 268-270

BI Double-Denarius

Deification issue posthumously for Claudius
II

Posthumous means arising, occurring, or
continuing after one's death

 

Obverse : DIVO CLAVDIO - Radiate head right.

Reverse: Large flaming altar

 Aurelius Claudius, known to history as
Claudius Gothicus or Claudius II, was born in either Dalmatia or Illyria on May
10, probably in A.D. 213 or 214. Claudius was known as being tall, with fiery
eyes, and so strong that he could knock out the teeth of man or beast with one
punch. It also says that Trajan Decius rewarded him after Claudius demonstrated
his strength while wrestling another soldier in the Campus Martius.



There is some evidence that Claudius was wounded in Gallienus' campaign to put
down the revolt of Ingenuus and that he later served with Aureolus under
Gallienus in the war with Postumus. By 268, when Gallienus took his troops into
Italy to put down Aureolus' revolt, Claudius had emerged as heir-apparent to
Gallienus and may also have been involved in the plot to assassinate the
emperor.



The first major challenge facing the new emperor was that of the Alemanni, who
had invaded Raetia and Italy. After an early defeat, Claudius replaced some
irresponsible officers and soldiers, designated Aurelian as cavalry commander,
and led the army to a decisive victory over the Alemanni. This victory earned
Claudius the title of Germanicus Maximus and several of his coin-types appear to
refer to victory over the Germans.



In addition to bad weather, a lack of supplies, and hunger, plague was a major
factor in the defeat of the Goths. Many of the Gothic prisoners were either
impressed into Roman military service or settled on farms as coloni. Claudius
received the title Gothicus in recognition of his triumph over the Goths. At
some point he had also been given the title Parthicus, but the unlikelihood of
any conflict with the Parthians in his short reign makes this difficult to
explain. Perhaps Damerau was correct in his suggestion that a Parthian unit may
have been involved in one of the battles with the Palmyrenes, although on this
front there were few achievements to claim. In any case, Claudius' victory over
the Goths was short-lived. The emperor himself caught the plague and died at
Sirmium early in 270. He was 56 years old. Claudius' brother, Quintillus, became
emperor briefly before losing out to Aurelian.

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