Lot 267: Trajan. A.D. 98-117. AR denarius. Rome, A.D. 98. Transition of Power.

Trajan. A.D. 98-117. AR denarius (18 mm, 3.27 g, 6 h). Rome, A.D. 98. IMP NERVA CAES TRAIAN AVG GERM P M, laureate head of Trajan right / TR P II COS P P, PROVID in exergue, Trajan, on left, in military dress, standing right, holding eagle-tipped scepter, receiving globe from Nerva, on right, togate, standing left. RIC 28; Woytek 10a; BMC 53; RSC 319. The reverse slight rough. Beautiful compact early portrait and lightly toned. Good very fine. 

When Domitian was assassinated in A.D. 96, the Senate on its own initiative proclaimed the elderly Nerva emperor. A first during imperial times, senatorial kingmaking never fared well for the new ruler, neither in this instance for Nerva nor for the few successive emperors elevated in this manner. As one of his first acts, Nerva promised a general amnesty to those involved in his predecessor''s assassination, and to the Praetorian Guard he paid a massive donative amounting to 5000 denarii a head. This was apparently insufficient to assuage the slight of them not having had any say in his elevation, however, for just slightly more than a year after having become emperor, in October A.D. 97 the praetorians invaded the palace and took Nerva hostage. They forced him to identify those involved in Domitian''s assassination, then after executing the assassins made Nerva publicly offer his thanks. His dignity in shambles and the imperial authority in tatters, and also realizing the need for a strong arm to keep the situation from spiraling out of control and devolving into a repeat of the bloodshed of the Year of the Four Emperors, Nerva sought a candidate for adoption, someone of modest temperament who was both popular with the troops and amenable to the Senate, and who would take over the reins of power. He settled an outstanding general of the German frontier, Marcus Ulpius Traianus, and after the formalities of the adopting Trajan all but abdicated the throne. The reverse of this coin commemorates this transition of power, and shows Trajan in his general''s garb receiving his the imperial authority, represented by the globe, from Nerva''s own hands.

• Offered By: Barry P. Murphy
• Lot #: 267
• Listing #: 228275
• Closed: Tuesday, December 15, 2015 5:28:40 PM CT
• Estimate: $150