Vetranio AD 350. Siscia
Follis Æ

19 mm, 2,19 g

D N VETRANIO P F AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right / VIRTVS AVGVSTORVM / Γ SIS, Vetranio, holding spear and globus, advancing right; bound captive to right.

Good Very Fine

RIC 296.

Vetranio, whose full name was Vetranio Augustus, was a Roman emperor who briefly ruled in AD 350 during the tumultuous period known as the "Constantinian dynasty." He was a career soldier and rose to prominence as a senior military officer in the Roman Empire. In AD 350, after the death of the emperor Constans, Vetranio was proclaimed emperor by his troops in the region of Illyricum (modern-day Balkans). He gained support from various Roman provinces, and for a brief time, he ruled alongside the co-emperor Constantius II, who held control over the eastern provinces. Despite his initial success, Vetranio's reign was short-lived. Constantius II felt threatened by Vetranio's power and initiated negotiations to secure his abdication. In AD 351, Vetranio willingly stepped down from the throne, and Constantius II allowed him to retire peacefully to private life.