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Julia Domna
–
Roman Empress
Wife of
Emperor
Septimius Severus
193-211 A.D. –
Bronze 17mm (2.33 grams) of
Nicopolis ad Istrum
in Moesia Inferior
Draped bust right.
Eagle
standing facing, head left, with open
wings.
You are bidding on the exact item pictured,
provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of
Authenticity.
Jupiter is usually thought to have originated as a sky god. His identifying
implement is the
thunderbolt
, and his primary sacred animal is
the eagle, which held precedence over other birds in the taking of
auspices
and became one of the most
 common
symbols of the
Roman army
(see
Aquila
). The two emblems were often combined to
represent the god in the form of an eagle holding in its claws a thunderbolt,
frequently seen on Greek and Roman coins. As the sky-god, he was a divine
witness to oaths, the sacred trust on which justice and good government depend.
Many of his functions were focused on the
Capitoline
(“Capitol Hill”), where the
citadel
was located. He was the chief deity of
the
early Capitoline Triad
with
Mars
and
Quirinus
. In the
later Capitoline Triad
, he was the central
guardian of the state with
Juno
and
Minerva
. His sacred tree was the oak. The
Romans regarded Jupiter as the
equivalent
of the Greek
Zeus, and in
Latin literature
and
Roman art
, the myths and iconography of Zeus
are adapted under the name Iuppiter.
An aquila, or eagle, was a prominent symbol used in
ancient Rome, especially as the
standard
of a
Roman legion
. A
legionary
known as an
aquilifer
, or eagle-bearer, carried this
standard. Each legion carried one eagle. The eagle was extremely important to
the Roman military, beyond merely being a symbol of a legion. A lost standard
was considered an extremely grave occurrence, and the Roman military often went
to great lengths to both protect a standard and to recover it if lost; for
example, see the aftermath of the
Battle of the Teutoburg Forest
, where the
Romans spent decades attempting to recover the lost standards of three legions.
Julia
Domna (unknown date–217)
was a member of the
Severan dynasty
of the
 Roman
Empire. Empress and wife of
Roman
Emperor
Lucius
Septimius Severus
and mother of Emperors
Geta
and Caracalla
, Julia was among the most important women ever to exercise power
behind the throne in the Roman Empire.
//
Family
background
Julia was of Syrian origin from the ancient city of
Emesa. Her
ancestors were Kings Priest of the famous temple of
Baal. The family
lost its kingdom to Rome but continued domination of the temple of Baal. The
family had an enormous wealth and was promoted to Roman senatorial aristocracy.
She was the youngest daughter of high-priest Gaius
Julius Bassianus
and her eldest sister was
Julia
Maesa
.
Reign
In the late 180s, Julia married future Emperor
Septimius Severus
who himself was in part of
Punic
background. The marriage proved to be a happy one and Severus
cherished his wife and her political opinions, since she was very well read and
keen on philosophy. Together, they had two sons, Lucius Septimius Bassianus (Caracalla)
in 186 and
Publius Septimius Geta
in 189.
Civil
War
When Severus became emperor in 193 he had a civil war waiting
for him, against rivals such as
Pescennius Niger
and
Clodius Albinus
. Julia accompanied him in his campaigns in the East, an
uncommon event in a time when women were expected to wait in Rome for their
husbands. Nevertheless, she remained with the emperor and among the several
proofs of affection and favour are the minting of coins with her portrait and
the title mater castrorum (mother of the camp).
Julia now had complete power and ruled behind the Roman
Empire. Many early Romans disliked the fact of her ruling over the throne when
Septimius Severus was at war.
Controversy
and transition of power
As empress, Julia was often involved in intrigues and had
plenty of political enemies who accused her of treason and adultery. None of
these accusations were proven, Severus continued to favour his wife and insisted
on her company in the campaign against the
Britons
that started in 208. When Severus died, in 211 in
York, Julia became
the mediator between their two sons.
Caracalla
and
Geta
who were to rule as joint emperors, according to their father’s wishes
expressed on his will. But the two young men were never fond of each other and
quarrelled frequently. Geta was murdered by Caracalla’s soldiers in the same
year.
Caracalla was now sole emperor, but his relations with his
mother were difficult, as attested by several sources, probably due to his
involvement in Geta’s murder. Nevertheless, Julia accompanied Caracalla in his
campaign against the
Parthian empire
in 217. During this trip, Caracalla was assassinated and
succeeded (briefly) by
Macrinus
.
On hearing about the rebellion, Julia chose to commit suicide. Her body was
brought to Rome and placed in the Sepulcrum C. et L. Caesaris (perhaps a
separate chamber in the
Mausoleum of Augustus
). Later, however, both her bones and those of Geta
were transferred by her sister
Julia
Maesa
to the
Mausoleum of Hadrian
.
She was later deified.
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