To Jupiter The Protector Of The Emperor Licinius

Roman Imperial Licinius I ​

Struck to celebrate his decennalia in AD 317 this beautifully detailed aureus was minted during a period of peace between Licinius and his co-emperor Constantine. The reverse, marked on the platform with SIC X SIC XX, gives thanks for ten years of rule and seeks the gods' favour for a further ten such years, that they might be enjoyed in health and prosperity. Licinius may well have held such hopes, for 317 marked a high point of peace and stability, and it was in this year that he elevated his young son to the rank of Caesar, despite his being only two years old. Alas, it was not to be.

After 317 the uneasy truce the two Augusti maintained after their previous conflicts quickly soured again; Licinius reneged on the jointly issued Edict of Milan in 320, beginning a new persecution of Christians in the Eastern Roman Empire - an act that further alienated him from his colleague. Then in 321 tempers rose when Constantine pursued a band of Sarmatians that had been ravaging his territory across the Danube into Licinius' realm. When this was repeated in 323 Licinius accused Constantine of breaking the treaty between them. Constantine wasted no time in invading Licinius' lands, defeating his fleet in 323 and routing his army at the Battle of Adrianople. By 325, having been defeated again at sea at the Battle of the Hellespont and on land at the final pitched Battle of Chrysopolis, Licinius and his son were prisoners of Constantine who, despite promising clemency, soon found cause to have both father and son executed.

The reverse design of this aureus featuring Jupiter atop a platform, at first standing and later seated, was an innovation in design that became a standard type at Nicomedia with little variation until the Battle of Chrysopolis in AD 324. That he should use Jupiter so prominently on his coinage is not surprising given the opposing beliefs of Licinius and Constantine. The latter had taken readily to Christianity, using the Chi-Rho symbol as his talisman, emblazoning it on the shields and standards of his army, while placing the worship of Sol Invictus first and foremost among the religions of his territory. Licinius on the other hand might have seen himself as being the bastion of traditional Roman religious beliefs, taking Jupiter as his patron and protector, as seen here in the legends of his coins.

This religious rivalry was borne out at the Battle of Chrysopolis, where Licinius drew up his battle line with images of the Roman gods prominently displayed in the ranks; this was mirrored by a multitude of Chi-Rho symbols in the opposing army of Constantine. Apparently, Licinius had developed a superstitious dread of the symbol which he allowed to infect the morale of his soldiers. The resulting slaughter of his army was viewed by Christians throughout the empire as a triumph of their god over the old pagan deities, further hastening the decline of traditional Roman religious beliefs. IOVI CONSERVATORI LICINIUS AVGVSTVS: To Jupiter the protector of the emperor Licinius.