The assassination of Julius Caesar was a pivotal moment in history and with it, many artifacts and historical ornaments have been uncovered that originate around this important point in history. As such, 1 of the around 100 surviving Brutus coins is being placed up for auction with the expectation that it would fetch up to $300,000.
Brutus Coins Auction
According to Live Science, the coins were silver denarius and commemorated the "Ides of March," which were used as a way to pay Marcus Junius Brutus' troops after the assassination of Julius Caesar. The assassin himself was the one who minted these coins.
The minting of the coins was done as a form of celebrating the death of Julius Caesar's murder. What made the coins special was that they had daggers on their "tails" side, which can be interpreted as a representation of the assassination but was supposed to symbolize how Rome was free of Caesar because of Brutus.
Estimates say there are only around 100 of the coins that have survived, making it an extremely rare specimen that is expected to fetch up to $300,000 at the auction. The coins were called "EID MAR" denarius and were minted in BC 42.
Brutus was forever known as the man who killed Julius Caesar. According to Britannica, the death of Brutus happened by his own hand after they met Mark Antony and Octavian.
In the second battle of Philippi, after Cassius killed himself upon defeat in the first fight, Brutus followed suit and took his own life.
Who Is Julius Caesar
By BC 50, Julius Caesar became the most powerful politician in the Roman Republic not just the head of the military, but a strong force that brought multiple Roman victories and extended its territories into France. After much success in the Gallic Wars, the Roman senate asked him to relinquish his military command.
However, Caesar decided to refuse and this is when he took his army across the Rubicon river, which resulted in a civil war. Eventually, Caesar won this civil war which grew his power even more by 44 BC, earning him the title of "dictator in perpetuity."
Live Science reports that many politicians feared that his hunger for power wouldn't stop at being a dictator and that he would want to become king. This resulted in his assassination by a group of Roman senators on March 15, considered the Ides of March.
EID MAR Denarius
The EID MAR denarius was a coin minted by Brutus as a way to pay his troops. It was equivalent to a day's wage and on its "heads" side read the words "BRUT IMP," which meant Commander Brutus.
Liv Yarrow, a New York Brooklyn College history professor, said that Julius Caesar was the first Roman to ever place their face on a coin. Stack's Bowers Galleries will be hosting the auction for a silver coin and although expected to fetch a high price, this was not the most paid for an ancient coin.
Coin World reports that in October 2020, a gold EID MAR coin sold for a record $4.2 million.
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