184
3221
Gordian I Africanus. Silver Denarius (3.19 g), AD 238.
Rome. IMP M
ANT GORDIANVS AFR AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of
Gordian I right.
Reverse:
P M T-R P COS P P, emperor, togate, standing
facing, head left, holding branch and short scepter. RIC 1; BMC 1-3; RSC
2. An exceptional example, needle sharp with an amazing portrait of the
emperor. Luster present and delicately toned.
Very rare and one of the finest
specimens known
.
Nearly Mint State.
Discontent with the rule of Maximinus I, who was viewed as a barbarian by
Rome’s elite and was generally hated otherwise due to heavy taxation to
finance his military operations against the Germans and Sarmatians, led
to three serious revolts. The first two were ruthlessly suppressed. The third
started in Africa, where wealthy landowners revolted against the heavy
financial burdens imposed by a corrupt local treasury official who was
using false judgments for extortion. The landowners equipped their cli-
ents and farmhands with whatever weapons and farm tools were handy,
slew the offending treasury official and his bodyguard, then proclaimed
the aging governor, Marcus Antonius Gordianus Sempronianus, and his
son as co-emperors. The Senate in Rome quickly backed the cause of
the African landowners, affirming the elevation of Gordian I and Gordian
II as co-emperors. Upon hearing the news of the revolt, Maximinus, who
was wintering in Sirmium, prepared his armies and marched on Rome.
The reign of the Gordiani was short-lived, lasting at most a mere 36 days.
Capellianus, the governor of Numidia, controlled the only legion in the
area and nursed a long-standing grudge against the Gordiani. He assem-
bled his troops, the veteran legio III Augusta, and marched on Carthage
where he easily overwhelmed the ragtag forces of the Gordiani. Gordian
II was killed in the fighting, and on hearing the news his son’s death and
the annihilation of the local levies, the elder Gordian hanged himself.
Estimated Value ......................................................................$8,000 - 9,000
Ex A Gentleman’s Collection (Triton XII, 5 January 2009), 719; Tkalec (18
February 2002), 218.
