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Carus – Roman Emperor: 282-283 A.D.
Bronze Antoninianus 22mm (2.90 grams) Ticinum mint
Reference: RIC 72; Cohen 59
IMP CARVS P F AVG, Radiate and cuirassed bust right.
PAX EXERCITI / PXXI, Pax standing left, holding branch and signum.
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.jpg/200px-Statue_of_the_goddess_Pax_(Pavlovsk_Garden,_St_Petersburg,_Russia).jpg) In Roman mythology, Pax (Latin for peace) (her Greek equivalent was Eirene) was recognized as a goddess during the rule of Augustus. On the Campus Martius, she had a temple called the Ara Pacis, and another temple on the Forum Pacis. She was depicted in art with olive branches, a cornucopia and a scepter. There was a festival in her honor on January 3. Daughter of Jupiter and Iustitia. Pax was often associated with spring. This word is of very frequent occurrence on Roman coins, nor is it always possible to decide as to which particular pacification it is to be referred.
Pax, regarded by the ancients as a goddess, was worshipped not only at Rome but also at Athens. Her alter could not be stained with blood. The Emperor Claudius began the construction of a magnificent temple to her honor, which Vespasian finished, in the Via Sacra. Singular to say, no representation of the superb Temple of Peace, built by Vespasian, appears on coins of that Emperor, nor of his son Titus.–See Templum Pacis. The attributes of Peace, as exhibited on medals, are the haste pura, the olive branch, the cornucopiae; and often the caduceus. Sometimes (as on coins of Vespasian, Domitian, and M. Aurelius) she is represented setting fire to a pile of arms.
Peace was considered to be in the power of him, to whom belonged the auspices (auspicia); whence, according to Dion, the Caesars were called the Lords of Peace and War (Pacis et Belli Domini). Accordingly we find coins of the Emperors proclaiming Pax AVGusta, or AVGusti; Pax Aeterna; Pax Perpetua; Pax Fundata; Pax Publica; Pax Ubique Parta; and these inscriptions are accompanied by various symbols such as the Temple of Peace, as on medals of Augustus, or the Temple of Janus shut, as on those of Nero; or a woman holding a cornucopiae in her left hand as in Augustus, Hadrian, &c. The symbol of Eternal Peace, as manifested in the figure of the goddess setting fire to a heap of armor both offensive and defensive, is seen on coins of Galba, Vitellius, Vespasian, Antoninus Pius, and Aurelius, as in Pax Augusti. The head of pax is seen on denarii of Julius Caesar and of Augustus.
Marcus Aurelius Carus (c. 230 – late July/early August, 283) was a Roman Emperor (282-283). During his short reign, Carus tried to follow the path of restoration of the empire strength marked by Aurelian and Probus. His sons Carinus and Numerian formed, with Carus, a short lived dynasty, which granted further stability to a resurgent empire. He also had a daughter Aurelia Paulina.
Biography
Carus, whose name before the accession may have been Marcus Numerius Carus, was born, probably, at Narbo (modern Narbonne) in Gaul,[1] but was educated at Rome. He was a senator, and had filled various civil and military posts before he was appointed prefect of the Praetorian Guard by the emperor Probus in 282. After the murder of Probus at Sirmium, Carus was proclaimed emperor by the soldiers. Although Carus severely avenged the death of Probus, he was himself suspected of having been an accessory to the deed. He does not seem to have returned to Rome after his accession, but contented himself with an announcement of the fact to the Senate.
Bestowing the title of Caesar upon his sons Carinus and Numerian, he left Carinus in charge of the western portion of the empire, and took Numerian with him on the expedition against the Persians which had been contemplated by Probus. Having defeated the Quadi and Sarmatians on the Danube, Carus proceeded through Thrace and Asia Minor, annexed Mesopotamia, pressed on to Seleucia and Ctesiphon, and carried his arms beyond the Tigris. The Sassanid Emperor Bahram II limited by internal opposition, could not effectively defend his territory. For his victories, which avenged all the previous defeats suffered by the Romans against the Sassanids, Carus received the title of Persicus Maximus.
Carus hopes of further conquest were cut short by his death. One day, after a violent storm, it was announced that he was dead. His death was variously attributed to disease, the effects of lightning, or a wound received in a campaign against the Persians. The facts that he was leading a victorious campaign, and that his son Numerian succeeded him without opposition, suggest that his death may have been due to natural causes.
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