Severus Alexander became emperor at 13 and ruled with the guidance of his mother Julia Mamaea. In the 230s he campaigned against the new Persian Sasanian empire and against Germanic tribes, and this Mars Ultor (‘Mars the Avenger’) coin was struck for those wars. He was murdered by his soldiers in 235, which began the 50-year ‘Crisis of the Third Century’.
Castings, Coins
KM-1016 Severus Alexander Mars Ultor Denarius (Large)
$16.50
Larger gold overlay casting pendant of the same coin as KM-1009. Obverse: laureate draped bust of Severus Alexander, IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG. Reverse: MARS VLTOR, Mars advancing right with spear and shield. Inscriptions explained: IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG is short for Latin ‘Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander Augustus’, meaning ‘Emperor Caesar Marcus Aurelius Severus Alexander, the Augustus (revered one)’: the full official name and titles of Severus Alexander, emperor AD 222-235. MARS VLTOR is Latin for ‘Mars Ultor’, ‘Mars the Avenger’, the war god in his role of avenging Rome’s enemies.
