Iulius Caesar (47-46 B.C.) Æ As, 'earliest portrait of Iulius Caesar'

Iulius Caesar. Æ As, Nikaia (Nicomedia), struck in the name of the governor of Bithynia et Pontus, the proconsul C. Vibius Pansa Caetronianus, year 236 = 47/46 BC. ΝΙΚΑΙΕΩΝ Bare head of Caesar to right. Rev. ΕΠΙ ΓΑΙΟΥ / ΟΥΙΒΙΟΥ / ΠΑΝΣΑ // ϚΛΣ Nike advan­cing to right, holding wreath in her right hand and palm in her left; to right and below left, monogram.One of the most interesting consuls in provincial coins BMC 8. RPC 2026. Very rare (19 mentioned in RPC) with a fascinating buste of Iulius Caesar.

Weight: 7.45 g Diameter: 22.2 mm

This is the earliest portrait of Iulius Caesar, predating that of Lampsacus (RPC I 2268-9) by a year and the earliest Rome mint denarii by two. Julius Caesar started his relationship with the Roman province of Bithynia before 74 BC when the province, then under the leadership of Nicomedes IV of Bithynia, willed the area to Rome in an effort to protect itself from its neighbor and arch enemy Pontus.

Prior to the assistance of Rome in 74 BC, Iulius Caesar came to Bithynia in 80 BC as an ambassador from Rome. He befriended Nicomedes IV and was even accused of having a sexual relationship with the ruler. This all could have been gossip with no real substance but the truth was never really discovered. In fact, enemies later in Caesar’s career would bring this disparaging commentary into the public forum in the hopes to discredit him.

This coin was struck around 47/6 BC so long after his initial arrival to Bithynia. In the interim, Rome managed to take control of Pontus through their military success in the third Mithridatic war which occurred 73-63 BC.

Reference : RPC I 2026

Source : https://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/1/2026

Collection : Roman Imperatorial collection