Ancient Coin of the Day: A dupondius of Claudius, ca. AD 41-50. The decoration on the Reverse features 'CERES AUGUSTA' - 'The Augustan Goddess of Corn' - one of a number of personifications of imperial divinities that featured on Claudius' coinage. #ACOTD
Image: RIC Claudius 94
Image: RIC Claudius 94
While the dating of the coin cannot be firmly established, it seems likely that the design was among the earliest produced by Claudius following his accession, given the circumstances with Rome's grain supply at the beginning of his reign.
Seneca (On the Shortness of Life 18.5) informs us that on Claudius' accession the Roman people had only "seven or eight days' food supplies yet remaining", highlighting how precarious the situation of Rome's food supply was and how crucial its management was.
Indeed, as Juvenal tells us (Satire 10.81), all the Roman people hoped for was "panem et circenses" - 'bread and circuses'. Now, as well as being a pointed comment on the political disenfranchisement of the Roman people, this quotation also highlights...
...how significant the grain supply was to the metropolitan population.
The management of the grain supply thus became perceived as a key metric of success for a 'good' emperor.
The management of the grain supply thus became perceived as a key metric of success for a 'good' emperor.
For more on the grain supply, see:
Kessler, David, and Peter Temin. “The Organization of the Grain Trade in the Early Roman Empire.” The Economic History Review, vol. 60, no. 2, 2007, pp. 313–332.
jstor.org/stable/4502066
#ACOTD #Claudius
Kessler, David, and Peter Temin. “The Organization of the Grain Trade in the Early Roman Empire.” The Economic History Review, vol. 60, no. 2, 2007, pp. 313–332.
jstor.org/stable/4502066
#ACOTD #Claudius
