Roman Antoninianus Coins

Inv. No.: c131
Date: A.D. 247 (Hayes).
Weight: 2.80g
 
Obv.: Philip II, bareheaded, draped.
M.IVL.PHILIPPVS CAES.

Rev.: Female figure wearing cap, standing between eagle with crown in beak and lion; standard in left hand, curved sword in right hand.
PROVINCIA DACIA AN.I

When Philip I became Emperor in 244, he immediately made his son Caesar. In 247 the boy, now ten, was proclaimed Augustus. From this time till their deaths two years later, the reverses of their coins bore similar types.

Philip I put Dacia in his debt in 247 by making her a free province. Its inhabitants, thereby, were equal in all respects with Roman citizens. For AN.I (“year one”) it appears that the Dacians began their dates using this event as a starting point. Similar coins have AN.II, AN.III, etc.

As long as Dacia was subject to the Romans, her personification on coins was regularly depicted in a seated position before some trophy, as in coin 89. From the time of her emancipation, however, standing became her normal position. The cap on her head is frequently identified as the pileus, or cap of liberty. The eagle, the symbol of the Roman Empire, is here adopted by Dacia, because she has been made Roman. The lion was the usual symbol of the province.

Comparanda:
C., Philippe fils 92; St., pp. 663-665, s.v. “PROVINCIA DACIA AN.I”.