2016-11-21 Mon

A series of coins were struck to honour murdered Agrippina Senior who was the wife of Germanicus. The coins were struck by her son Gaius, also known as Caligula. One of this circa 37 to 41 A.D. bronze sestertius struck in Rome will be offered at the Numismatica Ars Classica’s auction No. 97 in Zurich on 12th December.

Agrippina Senior was a favoured member of the Julio-Claudian family, under the reign of her grandfather Augustus. After she got married to Livia’s grandson Germanicus, she was about to get the highest status.

After the death of Augustus and the rise of Tiberius, there was a shift from the bloodlines of the Julii to the Claudii. Germanicus died in 19 and for the next 10 years Agrippina opposed Tiberius until in 29, when she lost her all her freedom, and in 33 she was murdered. She had been imprisoned on the island of Pandataria, along with her son Drusus, who also died and another son, Nero committed suicide very soon.

Three issues of sestertii were struck in her memory. The first type was produced by her son and her brother Claudius issued a series, which was later modified to feature inscriptions for emperor Titus for the third type.

The coin offered at the auction features a carpentum, a two-wheeled carriage with an arched covering, pulled by two mules. The inscription describes her as the daughter of Marcus (Agrippa) and the mother of Gaius (Caligula). It has an estimate of 5,000 Swiss francs.