Nero. AD 54-68. Æ Sestertius (34mm, 23.81 g, 6h). Lugdunum (Lyon) mint. Struck circa AD 66. Laureate head left, globe at point of neck / Triumphal arch, showing the front, with a wreath hung across it, surmounted by the emperor in facing quadriga accompanied by Pax and Victory, flanked by two soldiers; statue of Mars in side niche; the faces and plinths of the arch are ornamented with elaborate reliefs. RIC I 500; WCN 452; Lyon 191; cf. Elkins, Monuments Figure 79 (for reverse type). Attractive light brown patina, minor roughness and flan flaws, marks near and on edge. VF. Important and carefully rendered architectural reverse type.

From the CLA Collection.

This monumental triumphal arch was erected by Nero to commemorate Roman military campaigns against the Parthians in Mesopotamia and Armenia. Although not particularly successful in a military sense, with Paetus losing almost his entire army at Randeia in Armenia, the war did end with a peace treaty favorable to Rome that was upheld for nearly fifty years. This coin type is vitally important for architectural historians, for the arch was dismantled after Nero's ignominious end in 68 and is only known through its depiction on the coins.

Closing Date and Time: 23 January 2025 at 10:15:20 ET.



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