010b Honorius

Ruler:  Honorius, 393-423 AD

Obverse:  D N HONORIVS P F AVG, pearl-diademed, draped and cuirassed bust to right

Reverse: VICTORIA AVGGG, emperor standing facing, head to right, holding long cross and Victory on globe, treading on captive seated to left; R-V across fields, COMOB in exergue.

Mint: Ravenna, AD 402-406.

Denomination: Solidus

Weight: 

Reference: RIC X 1287; Depeyrot 7/1.

Provenance: purchased in 2004 bei der Firma G. Blancon, Hannover.

Note:  Honorius became Augustus of the West at the age of ten at the behest of his father Theodosius I, who was intent on establishing the succession before his death. Given his young age, however, he was assisted by the valiant general Stilicho, who was half Vandal in origin and unlikely to have been aiming for the throne. The East, on the other hand, was entrusted to Honorius's brother Arcadius, and this was home to unrest because the two brothers did not like each other and were both assisted by cunning and manipulative advisers. By now there was no longer talk of a western and eastern part of the empire, but of two separate empires. Theodosius' project of a united empire in solidarity with the barbarian peoples, integrated into the Roman army, had failed. According to some historians Arcadius was the first Byzantine emperor. Stilicho faced great difficulties on the eastern front, mainly due to Alaric's Goths and other tribes crossing into Gaul. The situation precipitated and the Senate refused to pay a large sum of money to Alaric, further accusing Stilicho of conspiring with the enemy and condemning him to death in 408. It was the beginning of the end for the West, because the most valuable politician and general was lost. Honorius resided in Ravenna, where he treacherously attempted to murder Alaric, who was there to renew the 'foedus' with the emperor. This caused him to break off all negotiations and led to the famous 'sack of Rome' in 410, which marked the end of the city as capital. The news of Rome's fall represented a trauma for the empire and the collapse of the certainty of its invincibility. Honorius also did not recognize the marriage between his half-sister Galla Placidia and Ataulf, Alaric's successor. This marriage was strongly desired by the Goths and may have been a response to the crisis in the empire, as Ataulf intended to settle permanently in Roman territories by offering protection to the emperor instead of fighting him. In 413 General Flavius Constantius defeated four usurpers in the western provinces, succeeded in signing a peace treaty with Ataulf, and became associate emperor under the name Constantius III (421) but, unrecognized by the eastern empire, died shortly thereafter. In 423 Honorius also died.

Colección : 18c Roman solidi