Julia Domna (AD 193-217). AV aureus (21mm, 7.28 gm, 5h). NGC Choice AU 5/5 - 3/5, light marks. Rome, AD 194. IVLIA•DO-MNA•AVG, draped bust of Julia Domna right, seen from front, wearing helmet-like wig of plaits, large chignon at back of head / VENER-I VICTR, Venus Callipyge standing right, seen from behind, drapery below posterior, palm branch cradled on left arm, apple upward in right hand, leaning left elbow on a low column to her left. RIC IV.I (Septimius Severus) 536. Calicó 2641. High-relief portrait on bright, lustrous flan with strong flow lines. Upon Severus' ascension as Roman Emperor in AD 193, Julia was named Augusta and became his closest advisor and confidant. Her love of art, learning, and philosophy manifested in a cultural Renaissance in Rome. Her profile graces the obverse of this superb aureus, while the reverse image of Venus Victrix recalls an issue of Titus struck a century earlier. The original Roman statue - Aphrodite Kallipygos (Callipygian Venus) - is thought to be a copy of an older Greek statue, and literally means "Venus (Aphrodite) of the beautiful buttocks."

HID09801242017

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