Silver Denarius of Julius Caesar, Africa
Title
Silver Denarius of Julius Caesar, Africa
Subject
Coinage--Rome
Description
Obv. bust of Venus with diadem r.; border of dots
Rev. Aeneas walking l. carrying his father Anchises on his shoulder and household god or Victory in r. hand; behind CAESAR; border of dots
Weight: 3.8g
Diameter: 17.6mm
Julius Caesar continued a traditional Roman practice of tracing lineage back to antiquity and early Rome. The Julian family traced their ancestry back to Aeneas, a Trojan prince who fled after the Trojan War. He travelled around the Mediterranean for a while in an Odyssey-style journey as chronicled in Vergil’s Aeneid. Eventually, he landed in Italy and founded the city of Lavinium. His son, called Ascanius and Iulus interchangeably, went on to found the city of Alba Longa which would eventually be absorbed into Rome. Julius Caesar claimed that the family name “Julius” or “Iulius” came from Aeneas’ son Iulus.
Rev. Aeneas walking l. carrying his father Anchises on his shoulder and household god or Victory in r. hand; behind CAESAR; border of dots
Weight: 3.8g
Diameter: 17.6mm
Julius Caesar continued a traditional Roman practice of tracing lineage back to antiquity and early Rome. The Julian family traced their ancestry back to Aeneas, a Trojan prince who fled after the Trojan War. He travelled around the Mediterranean for a while in an Odyssey-style journey as chronicled in Vergil’s Aeneid. Eventually, he landed in Italy and founded the city of Lavinium. His son, called Ascanius and Iulus interchangeably, went on to found the city of Alba Longa which would eventually be absorbed into Rome. Julius Caesar claimed that the family name “Julius” or “Iulius” came from Aeneas’ son Iulus.
Date
47/46 BCE
Collection
Citation
“Silver Denarius of Julius Caesar, Africa,” Linda Lear Center Digital Collections and Exhibitions, accessed August 28, 2026, https://omeka.conncoll.edu/items/show/2023.