Decentius caesar, 351 – 353
Solidus, Trier 351, AV 3.80 g. D N DECENTI – VS FORT CAES Bare-headed, draped and cuirassed bust r. Rev. VICTORIA CAES LIB'ROMANOR Victory standing r. and Libertas standing l., supporting a trophy between them; the latter holds a sceptre in l. hand. In exergue, T R. C 31. RIC 293. Bastien, Magnence 82. Depeyrot 12/3.
Very rare. Several marks in field and on edge, possible traces of mounting,
otherwise good very fine

The revolt of Magnentius in 350 followed those of previous rebels in the West, two of whom, Postumus and Carausius, were able to establish their own empires modelled after Rome. In all three cases these men hailed from obscure, peasant origins and rose through successful military careers. The background of Magnentius, perhaps the son of a Frankish father and a British mother, was so obscure that he is said to have been a slave before he was a soldier; eventually he became a field commander of the senior palatine units of the Western army. Magnentius soon realized he needed help to defend his fledgling empire, for he not only was contending with the army of the legitimate emperor Constantius II, but also with Germans across the Rhine who had been stirred up by Constantius’ agents. Thus, he raised a certain Decentius – variously described as his brother or a cousin – to the rank of Caesar and placed him in charge of the Rhine defence. This probably occurred in July or August of 350, but some scholars believe he was hailed Caesar sometime between March and July of 351, in response to Constantius having raised Gallus to the rank of Caesar in the East. Defending the Rhine would be a daunting task even for the most capable of soldiers, and it proved too great for Decentius, whose resources were so limited that he could do little more than scramble from one emergency to another. The Germanic raids across the Rhine, some led by Chnodomarius of the Alemanni, were devastating, and laid waste to much of the Roman lands. They even caused the defection of Cologne to Constantius II, seemingly in 353, not long before Magnentius and Decentius committed suicide as the armies of Constantius advanced. This solidus belongs to the first issue of Decentius at Trier. It includes not only solidi, but gold multiples that must have been distributed (along with solidi) as an accession bonus and a celebration of the Caesar’s first consulship, for there are gold medallions showing both Magnentius and Decentius in consular garb. The obverse inscription is of some interest, for it describes Decentius as Fortissimus Caesar (strong, vigorous, brave), and the inscription and type on the reverse combine to celebrate the rebels as victors and liberators.