Coin Roman Empire Volusianus - Antoninianus, Standing Emperor - 253 Rome

Obverse: IMP CAE C VIB VOLVSIANO AVG

Reverse: P M TR P IIII COS II

On the reverse, Volusian is depicted laureate and draped, standing, facing left, holding a laurel branch in his right hand and a short sceptre in his left hand. This classic imperial iconography combines two major symbolic attributes: the laurel branch, emblem of victory and peace, and the sceptre, insignia of sovereign authority.

Volusian, whose full name was Gaius Vibius Volusianus, reigned jointly with his father Trebonianus Gallus between 251 and 253 AD, during a particularly troubled period of Roman history known as the Crisis of the Third Century. The Empire was then facing considerable military pressure on several fronts: Gothic incursions into the Balkans and the persistent threat of the Sassanid Empire to the East. Internally, the rapid succession of emperors weakened imperial authority. In 253, Volusian and his father were overthrown and then assassinated by their own troops, who rallied to the usurper Aemilian, in a context of military discontent. Their deaths came after a reign marked by difficulties, particularly following the treaty concluded with the Goths after the Battle of Abritus in 251, where their predecessor Decius had met his end. The antoninianus, whose theoretical value was equivalent to two denarii, was then the principal silver coin of imperial issues, although its metallic fineness was in constant decline, reflecting the economic difficulties facing the Empire.