VALENTINIAN II 378AD Authentic Ancient Roman Coin WREATH i18377

$144.00 $129.60

Availability: 1 in stock

SKU: i18377 Category:

Item: i18377

 

 

Authentic Ancient

Coin of:

Valentinian II – Roman Emperor: 375-392 A.D. –

Bronze AE4 13mm (1.16 grams) Siscia mint: 378-383 A.D.
DNVALENTINIANVSPFAVG – Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust right.
Wreath, VOT/X/MVLT/XX within, Exe: BSIS.

You are bidding on the exact item pictured,

provided with a Certificate of Authenticity and Lifetime Guarantee of

Authenticity.

 

A laurel wreath is a circular
wreath
made of interlocking branches and leaves
of the
bay laurel
(Laurus nobilis), an aromatic
broadleaf evergreen, or later from spineless butcher’s broom (Ruscus
hypoglossum
) or cherry laurel (Prunus
laurocerasus
). In
Greek mythology
,
Apollo
is represented wearing a laurel wreath
on his head. In
ancient Greece
wreaths were awarded to victors,
both in athletic competitions, including the ancient
Olympics
made of wild olive-tree known as kotinos
(κότινος),[1]
(sc. at
Olympia
) and in poetic meets; in
Rome
they were symbols of martial victory,
crowning a successful commander during his
triumph
. Whereas ancient laurel wreaths are
most often depicted as a
horseshoe
shape, modern versions are usually
complete rings.File:Lorbeerkranz Zypern rem.jpg

In common modern idiomatic
usage it refers to a victory. The
expression “resting on one’s laurels” refers to someone relying entirely on
long-past successes for continued fame or recognition, where to “look to one’s
laurels” means to be careful of losing rank to competition.

Academic use


 

Ovid
with laurel wreath, common in
poets.

In some countries the laurel wreath is used as symbol of the
master’s degree
. The wreath is given to young
masters in the
graduation ceremony
of the university. The word
Laureate
in ‘poet
laureate
‘ refers to being signified by the laurel wreath. The
medieval Florentine poet and philosopher
Dante Alighieri
,[dubious
]
a graduate of the
Sicilian School
, is often represented in
paintings and sculpture wearing a laurel wreath.

Laureato[3]
is the term used in Italy
to refer to any graduated student. In
some italian regions (Veneto,
Friuli-Venezia Giulia
and
Trentino
), right after the graduation ceremony
(in Italian: laurea), the student receives a laurel wreath and is allowed
to wear it for the rest of the day. This tradition was born in the
University of Padua
and since the end of the
19th century is common to all
northeastern Italian
universities.

At
Connecticut College
in the United States,
members of the junior class carry a laurel
chain
, which the seniors pass through during
commencement. It represents nature and the continuation of life from year to
year. Immediately following commencement, the junior girls write out with the
laurels their class year, symbolizing they have officially become seniors and
the cycle will repeat itself the following spring.

At
Mount Holyoke College
in
South Hadley, Massachusetts
, United States,
laurel has been a fixture of
commencement
traditions since 1900, when
graduating students carried or wore laurel wreaths. In 1902, the chain of
mountain laurel
was introduced; since then,
tradition has been for seniors to march across campus, carrying and linked by
the chain. The mountain laurel represents the
bay laurel
used by the
Romans
in wreaths and crowns of honor.[4]

At Reed College
in
Portland, Oregon
, United States, members of the
senior class receive laurel wreaths upon submitting their senior
thesis
in May. The tradition stems from the use
of laurel wreaths in athletic competitions; the seniors have “crossed the finish
line,” so to speak.

At
St. Mark’s School
in
Southborough, Massachusetts
, students who
successfully complete three years of one classical language and two of the other
earn the distinction of the Classics Diploma and the honor of wearing a laurel
wreath on Prize Day.

In Sweden
, those receiving a Doctorate or an
Honorary Doctorate
at the Faculty of Philosophy
(meaning Philosophy, Languages, Arts, History and Social Sciences), receive a
laurel wreath during the ceremony of conferral of the degree.


Architectural and decorative arts motif


 

Alexander Garden Grille


 

“Victory, A Knight Being Crowned With A Laurel Wreath” by
Frank Dicksee
.

The laurel wreath is a common motif in
architecture
,
furniture
, and
textiles
. The laurel wreath is seen carved in
the stone and decorative plaster works of
Robert Adam
, and in
Federal
,
Regency
,
Directoire
, and
Beaux-Arts
periods of architecture. In
decorative arts, especially during the
Empire period
, the laurel wreath is seen woven
in textiles, inlaid in marquetry, and applied to furniture in the form of gilded
brass mounts.
Alfa Romeo
added a laurel wreath to their

logo
after they won the inaugural Automobile World Championship in
1925 with the
P2
racing car.

Flavius Valentinianus (371 – 15 May 392), known usually by his

anglicised

name, Valentinian II, was a

Roman Emperor

from 375 to 392.

//

 Early

Life and Accession (371–375)

Flavius Valentinianus was born to Emperor

Valentinian I

and his second wife,

Justina

. He was the half-brother of Valentinian’s other son,

Gratian
, who

had shared the imperial title with his father since 367. He had three sisters

Galla

, Grata and Justa. The elder Valentinian died on campaign in Pannonia

in 375. Neither Gratian (then in Trier) nor his uncle Valens (emperor for the

East) were consulted by the army commanders on the scene. Instead of merely

acknowledging Gratian as his father’s successor, Valentinian I’s generals

acclaimed the four-year old boy

augustus

on 22 November 375. The army may have been uneasy about

Gratian’s lack of military ability, and so raised a boy who would not

immediately aspire to military command.

 Reign

from Milan (375–387)

Gratian, forced to accommodate the generals who supported his half-brother,

governed the trans-alpine provinces (including

Gaul,

Hispania
,

and Britain

), while Italy

, part of

Illyricum

, and

Africa

were under the rule of Valentinian. In 378, their uncle, the Emperor

Valens
, was

killed in battle with the

Goths
at

Adrianople

, and Gratian invited the general

Theodosius

to be emperor in the

East

. As a child, Valentinian II was under the influence of his

Arian

mother, the Empress Justina, and the imperial court at

Milan
, an

influence contested by the

Catholic

bishop
of

Milan, Ambrose
.

Justina used her influence over her young son to oppose the Catholic party

which was championed by Ambrose. In 385 Ambrose, backed by Milan’s populace,

refused an imperial request to hand over the

Portian basilica

for the use of Arian troops. In 386 Justina and Valentinian

received the Arian bishop

Auxentius

, and Ambrose was again ordered to hand over a church in Milan for

Arian usage. Ambrose and his congregation barricaded themselves inside the

church, and the imperial order was rescinded.

Magnus Maximus

used the emperor’s heterodoxy against him, and even his

eventual protector, Theodosius, cast aspersions on his Arianism. Valentinian

also tried to restrain the despoiling of pagan temples in

Rome. Buoyed by

this instruction, the pagan

senators

, led by

Aurelius Symmachus

, the

Prefect of Rome

, petitioned in 384 for the restoration of the

Altar of Victory

in the

Senate

House
, which had been removed by Gratian in 382. Valentinian, at the

insistence of Ambrose, refused the request and, in so doing, rejected the

traditions and rituals of pagan Rome to which Symmachus had appealed.

In 383, Magnus Maximus, commander of the armies in Britain, declared himself

Emperor and established himself in Gaul and Hispania. Gratian died while fleeing

him. For a time the court of Valentinian, through the mediation of Ambrose, came

to an accommodation with the usurper, and Theodosius recognized Maximus as

co-emperor of the

West

. However, in 386 or 387, Maximus crossed the

Alps into the

Po

valley and threatened Milan. Valentinian II and Justina fled to

Theodosius in

Thessalonica

. The latter came to an agreement, cemented by his marriage to

Valentinian’s sister

Galla

, to restore the young emperor in the West. In 388, Theodosius marched

west and defeated Maximus. Although he was to appoint both of his sons emperor (Arcadius

in 383, Honorius

in 393), Theodosius remained loyal to the dynasty of Valentinian I.

After the defeat of Maximus, Theodosius remained in Milan until 391.

Valentinian took no part in Theodosius’

triumphal celebrations

over Maximus. Valentinian and his court were

installed at

Vienne

in Gaul, while Theodoisus appointed key administrators in the West,

and had coins minted which implied his guardianship over the 17 year old.

Justina had already died, and Vienne was far away from the influence of Ambrose.

Theodosius’ trusted general, the

Frank

Arbogast

, was appointed

magister militum

for the Western provinces (bar Africa) and guardian of

Valentinian. Acting in the name of Valentinian, Arbogast was actually

subordinate only to Theodosius.

While the general campaigned successfully on the Rhine, the young emperor

remained at Vienne, in contrast to his warrior father and his older brother, who

had campaigned at his age. Arbogast’s domination over the emperor was

considerable, and the general even murdered

Harmonius

, a friend of Valentinian suspected of taking bribes, in the
emperor’s presence.

The crisis reached a peak when Arbogast prohibited the emperor from leading

the Gallic armies into Italy to oppose a barbarian threat. Valentinian, in

response, formally dismissed Arbogast. The latter ignored the order, publically

tearing it up and arguing that Valentinian had not appointed him in the first

place. The reality of where the power lay was openly displayed. Valentinian

wrote to Theodosius and Ambrose complaining of his subordination to his general.

In explicit rejection of his earlier Arianism, he invited Ambrose to come to

Vienne to baptize

him.

However, on 15 May 392, Valentinian was found hanged in his residence in

Vienne. Arbogast maintained that the emperor’s death was suicide. While our main

source, Zosimus

writing in the early sixth century from Constantinople, states that the Frank

had Valentinian murdered,

ancient authorities are divided in their opinion.

The young man’s body was conveyed in ceremony to Milan for burial by Ambrose,

mourned by his sisters Justa and Grata. The bishop’s eulogy is the only

contemporary Western source for Valentinian’s death.

It is ambiguous on the question of the emperor’s death, which is not surprising,

as Ambrose represents him as a model of Christian virtue. Suicide, not murder,

would make Ambrose dissemble on this key question.

At first Arbogast recognized Theodosius’s son Arcadius as emperor in the

West, seemingly surprised by his charge’s death.

After three months, during which he had no communication from Theodosius,

Arbogast selected an imperial official,

Eugenius
,

as emperor. Theodosius initially tolerated this regime but, in January 393,

elevated the eight year old Honorius as augustus to succeed Valentinian

II. Civil war ensued and, in 394, Theodosius defeated Eugenius and Arbogast.

 Significance

Valentinian himself seems to have exercised no real authority, and was a

figurehead for various powerful interests: his mother, his co-emperors, and

powerful generals. Since the

Crisis of the Third Century

Diocletian

and his collegiate system. While

Constantine

and his sons had been strong military figures, they had also

re-established the practice of hereditary succession, adopted by Valentinian I.

The obvious flaw in these two competing requirements came in the reign of

Valentinian II, a child.

His reign was a harbinger of the fifth century, when children or nonentities,

reigning as emperors, were controlled by powerful generals and officials.


Frequently Asked Questions

How long until my order is shipped?::
Depending on the volume of sales, it may take up to 5 business days for

shipment of your order after the receipt of payment.

How will I know when the order was shipped?:
After your order has shipped, you will be left positive feedback, and that

date should be used as a basis of estimating an arrival date.

After you shipped the order, how long will the mail take?
USPS First Class mail takes about 3-5 business days to arrive in the U.S.,

international shipping times cannot be estimated as they vary from country

to country. I am not responsible for any USPS delivery delays, especially

for an international package.

What is a certificate of authenticity and what guarantees do you give

that the item is authentic?
Each of the items sold here, is provided with a Certificate of Authenticity,

and a Lifetime Guarantee of Authenticity, issued by a world-renowned numismatic

and antique expert that has identified over 10000 ancient coins and has provided them

with the same guarantee. You will be quite happy with what you get with the COA; a professional presentation of the coin, with all of the relevant

information and a picture of the coin you saw in the listing.

Compared to other certification companies, the certificate of

authenticity is a $25-50 value. So buy a coin today and own a piece

of history, guaranteed.

Is there a money back guarantee?

I offer a 30 day unconditional money back guarantee. I stand

behind my coins and would be willing to exchange your order for

either store credit towards other coins, or refund, minus shipping

expenses, within 30 days from the receipt of your order. My goal is

to have the returning customers for a lifetime, and I am so sure in

my coins, their authenticity, numismatic value and beauty, I can

offer such a guarantee.

Is there a number I can call you with questions about my

order?

You can contact me directly via ask seller a question and request my

telephone number, or go to my

About Me Page to get my contact information only in regards to

items purchased on eBay.

When should I leave feedback?
Once you receive your

order, please leave a positive. Please don’t leave any

negative feedbacks, as it happens many times that people rush to leave

feedback before letting sufficient time for the order to arrive. Also, if

you sent an email, make sure to check for my reply in your messages before

claiming that you didn’t receive a response. The matter of fact is that any

issues can be resolved, as reputation is most important to me. My goal is to

provide superior products and quality of service.

  • Selection Required: Select product options above before making new offer.
  • Offer Sent! Your offer has been received and will be processed as soon as possible.
  • Error: There was an error sending your offer, please try again. If this problem persists, please contact us.

Make Offer

To make an offer please complete the form below:
$
Please wait...
YEAR

Year_in_description

RULER

Valentinian II

DENOMINATION

Denomination_in_description

Shopping Cart