Caesar Denarius

OBVERSE

Head of Venus to the right

REVERSE

Aeneas to the left, carrying his father Anchises and the Palladium (from burning Troy)

CAESAR

HISTORICAL CONTEXT

In his propaganda, Caesar repeatedly emphasized his descent from the mythical ancestors depicted on this coin. Ascanius-Iulus, the son of Aeneas, is considered the progenitor of the Julian family. Aeneas, in turn, was descended from Venus. Here, the founding myth of Rome, symbolized by the Palladium, is linked to the origin of the gens Iulia.

PROVENANCE

Specimen from the collection of ancient coins from noble private ownership (compiled before World War I).