Lot 4615
Constans, AD 337-350. Silver Medallion of Eight Siliquae or Three Light Miliarenses (13.21g) minted at Aquileia, AD 340-. FL IVL CONS-TANS PF AVG. Diademed, draped and cuirassed bust of Constans right. Reverse: VICTORIAE DD NN AVGG. Victoria (Victory) seated right on a cuirass, holding with both hands wreath inscribed: VOT / X / MVLT / XV; *AQ in exergue. Gnecchi 25. An impressive medallion with a fine period portrait and bold details, toned a pearly-white gray. Extremely Rare. Extremely Fine.
After Constantine I died in May, AD 337, his three sons, Constantine II, Constantius II and Constans, unwilling to share their inheritance, engineered the murder of their half-cousins Delmatius and Hanniballianus. The youngest brothers benefited greatly from the dark deed, absorbing large territories; Constans ruling from Rome in the west and Constantius II operating from Antioch in the east. The eldest, Constantine II, though, was much displeased for he saw little of the spoils.
His demands for Italy and North Africa were rejected by Constans, who entered into an alliance with his middle brother. As that alliance grew stronger, Constantine II grew more alarmed. In the spring of AD 340, he invaded Italy, but was killed in an ambush outside of Aquileia. This medallion was struck to commemorate that event. The reverse type and legend: Victoriae Dominorum Nostrorum Augustorum - "For the Victory of the Commanders, our Emperors" may reflect the new political landscape, an empire now ruled by just two emperors, Constans in Europe and Constantius II in Asia. Alternatively, the medallion may be tied to Constans' successful campaign against the Franks in AD 341-342 or his visit to Britain in 342 or early 343 for what was likely a military emergency. These medallions would have been distributed at fêtes, public and private, or spectator games. (But after AD 384, medallions of this weight would no longer be struck. Theodosius I and Valentinian II forbade those who gave public games from distributing pieces which weighed over 1/60 pound [Mommsen, Mon. Rom. volume. III, p.73].)
Of the three sons of Constantine the Great and Fausta, Constans was the youngest and perhaps the worst. Contemporary historians paint a picture of an avaricious, cruel and much depraved man. The fault though that would ultimately prove his undoing was the contempt he showed his own soldiers and his favoritism toward his barbarian bodyguard. On January 12, AD 350, Constans was deposed by his field commander Magnentius at Augustodunum (Autun in central Gaul). Constans fled toward Spain and was slain near the Pyrenees.
Estimated Value $50,000 - 60,000.
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