Gold Aureus of Tiberius, 7.57 g.
Title
Gold Aureus of Tiberius, 7.57 g.
Creator
Tiberius
Date
14-37 CE
Description
Obverse: Tiberius, laureate head, profile view. TI(BERIVS) CAESAR DIVI AVG(VSTI) F(ILIVS) AVGVSTVS: Tiberius Caesar, Son of the Divine Augustus, Augustus.
Reverse: Pax seated, holding olive branch and scepter. PONTIF(EX) MAXIM(VS): pontifex maximus.
Style/Period: Early Roman Empire
The obverse of this coin depicts the laureate head of Tiberius in profile view. Tiberius was born to Tiberius Claudius Nero and Livia Drusilla; however, Livia and her husband divorced, and Livia married Octavian (later Augustus), making Tiberius the step-son of the first emperor. Cassius Dio (57.8.1-2) states that Tiberius never allowed the title Augustus to be officially voted to him, but he clearly did not object strongly to its use by others as it is found repeatedly on coinage and in other circumstances. The connection between the two is also clear in Tiberius’s portrait style, which is highly idealized, a style which Augustus used throughout his reign.
The reverse of the coin depicts a seated woman, most likely the goddess Pax or Peace, holding two of her popular attributes, an olive branch and a long scepter. Tiberius’s reign, though largely unpopular by the end, was relatively peaceful in terms of military conquests. Tiberius did not acquire any major territory for the empire nor engage in any major battles, which is possibly what this personification of peace is referring to. Pontifex maximus, the title given to the chief priest of Rome, was assumed by Tiberius on March 10, 15, which means that this coin must have been minted at least 7 months into Tiberius’s reign, which began September 17, 14.
-- Anna Vogel, LU `18
Bibliography: S. Hornblower and A. Spawforth, eds., The Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford 1996), s.v. Tiberius; J. M. Jones, A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins (London 1990), s.v. Pax; R. Seager, Tiberius (Berkeley 1972), xvi, 142-144.
The reverse of the coin depicts a seated woman, most likely the goddess Pax or Peace, holding two of her popular attributes, an olive branch and a long scepter. Tiberius’s reign, though largely unpopular by the end, was relatively peaceful in terms of military conquests. Tiberius did not acquire any major territory for the empire nor engage in any major battles, which is possibly what this personification of peace is referring to. Pontifex maximus, the title given to the chief priest of Rome, was assumed by Tiberius on March 10, 15, which means that this coin must have been minted at least 7 months into Tiberius’s reign, which began September 17, 14.
-- Anna Vogel, LU `18
Bibliography: S. Hornblower and A. Spawforth, eds., The Oxford Classical Dictionary (Oxford 1996), s.v. Tiberius; J. M. Jones, A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins (London 1990), s.v. Pax; R. Seager, Tiberius (Berkeley 1972), xvi, 142-144.
Source
Former collection of Ottilia Buerger. Purchased from L.S. Werner, March 2, 1959.
Identifier
91.117
Rights
Wriston Art Center Galleries, Lawrence University, Appleton, WI,wriston-gallery@lawrence.edu,920-832-6890
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Files
Citation
Tiberius, “Gold Aureus of Tiberius, 7.57 g.,” Lawrence University Classics Department & Ottilia Buerger Coin Collections, accessed November 5, 2026, https://thor.lawrence.edu/omeka/buerger/items/show/564.