A late GENIO POPVLI ROMANI coin

[Valentinian]

GENIO POPVLI ROMANI folles (nummi) of the First and Second Tetrarchies are among the most common Roman coins. They have the virtue of large size. This one is of Severus II as Augustus from shortly after the Second Tetrarchy. 

28 mm. 10.93 grams.
Severus II, Caesar 305-306, Augustus 306-307 (i.e. after Constantius died).
RIC VI Cyzicus 27b "c. 307, early"  Sear IV 14674.

The reverse type was introduced c. 294 in the coin reform of Diocletian. Few were issued after the Second Tetrarchy (defined by the reign of Constantius as Augustus). This is one of them. 

There is a web site with several pages on the GENIO POPVLI ROMANI type:
http://augustuscoins.com/ed/tetrarchy/Diocletianfolles.html

Coins of the tetrarchies are introduced here:
http://augustuscoins.com/ed/tetrarchy/

I love these hefty coins and wish you would show us some of yours!

 

[Roman Collector]

The only Severus II I have is this Sacra Moneta one:

Severus II, Caesar 1 May AD 305 - 25 July, 306.
Roman billon follis, 9.10 g, 27.1 mm, 11 h.
Rome, third officina, c. AD 305.
Obv: SEVERVS NOB CAES, laureate head, right.
Rev: SAC MON VRB AVGG ET CAESS NN, Moneta, draped, standing left, holding scales in right hand and cornucopiae in left hand; -/*//R T.
Refs: RIC vi, p. 365, 123a; Cohen 62; RCV 14638.

Here some GENIO POPVLI ROMANI folles from the Trier mint.

Diocletian, AD 284-305.
Roman billon follis, 8.99 g, 28.3 mm, 6 h.
Trier, AD 302-303.
Obv: IMP DIOCLETIANVS AVG, Laureate and cuirassed bust, right.
Rev: GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI, Genius, turreted, nude but for chlamys draped over left shoulder, standing left, holding patera in right hand and cornucopiae in left hand; S/F//IITR.
Refs: RIC vi, p. 196, 524a; RCV --.

Maximian, 1st Reign, AD 286-305.
Roman billon follis, 10.96 g, 27.2 mm, 12 h.
Trier, AD 298-99.
Obv: IMP MAXIMIANVS P F AVG, laureate head, right.
Rev: GENIO POP-VLI ROMANI, Genius, wearing modius, nude but for chlamys draped over left shoulder, standing left, holding patera in right hand and cornucopiae in left hand; A/*//TR.
Refs: RIC vi, p. 186, 277b.
Notes: Typically, the reverse legend is broken GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI.


Galerius as Caesar, AD 293-305.
Roman silvered billon follis, 8.62 g, 27.2 mm, 6 h.
Trier, AD 302-3.
Obv: MAXIMIANVS NOBIL C, laureate and cuirassed bust, right.
Rev: GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI, Genius standing facing, head left, wearing modius, naked but for chlamys over left shoulder, holding patera and cornucopiae; S/F//IITR.
Refs: RIC vi, p. 196, 508b; Cohen 65; RCV 14348.
Notes: Some numismatists postulate that the S F in the fields of these coins from Trier is an abbreviation for SAECVLI FELICITAS.


Constantius I, Caesar, 293-305.
Roman billon follis, 9.95 g, 26.6 mm, 11 h.
Trier, AD 296-97.
Obv: CONSTANTIVS NOB CAES, laureate head right.
Rev: GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI, Genius standing left, modius on head, naked but for chlamys over left shoulder, holding patera and cornucopiae; A/Γ//TR.
Refs: RIC vi, p. 183, 218a; Cohen 61; RCV 14035.

 

Edited July 23, 2022 by Roman Collector
I forgot Maximian!

[Theodosius]

That is a really sweet coin Warren! You don't find them with complete beaded borders and nice legends and devices like that very often.

I really like the larger LRBs too.

John

[Spaniard]

Very nice! @Valentinian

Galerius Maximianus as Caesar AE Follis minted 297 AD.

11,46 g. 25 mm.

Obv: GAL VAL MAXIMIANVS NOB CAES. Laureate Head right

Rev: GENIO POPVLI ROMANI/ (crescent)/ D// ANT. Genius standing left, holding cornucopiae and patera.

RIC VI 49b Antioch

From an old collection formed in the 1920s. Ex Münzhandlung Kallai, Vienna.

[Severus Alexander]

My latest GENIO POPVLI ROMANI (with the full legend, i.e. not abbreviated to GENIO POP ROM or similar) is this Constantine from Rome, issued c. 312-313.  These are quite plentiful, I think. (RIC 294a.)

RIC lists one more issue with the full legend at Rome, dated 313... I don't know if there are any later ones at other mints.

Here's one of the first of the type, issued in Ticinum in 294:

The basic idea goes back at least to Nero, though.  I won this As of his quite recently:

[Heliodromus]

33 minutes ago, Severus Alexander said:

RIC lists one more issue with the full legend at Rome, dated 313... I don't know if there are any later ones at other mints.

I'm pretty sure the Alexandrian type below is the last with the full legend (vs shortened GENIO POP ROM).

This is essentially a transitional type from when Licinius took over Maximinus II's mints in 313-314 AD. Maximinus had been issuing GENIO AVGVSTI with localized head of Serapis at Alexandria, and seeing as GENIO AVGVSTI was at that point really a Maximinus type, LIcinius tweaked it to GENIO POPVLI ROMANI instead.

There were two issues of these, first RIC 2-3 with mintmark ALE, then RIC 3-4 with mintmark ALE dot, below:

 

[Curtisimo]

Great coin @Valentinian! I still need to pick up an example from Maximian and Galerius to have a first tetrarchy set.  Here is my favorite Tetrarchy Follis. It is a Constantius invasion issue. This coin is extra special because it belonged to James, a friend who is sorely missed 😞.

Roman Empire
Constantius Chlorus (Invasion Issue)
AE Follis, silvered, Lugdunum/traveling mint, struck ca. AD 296
Obv.: FL VAL CONSTANTIVS NOB C; Laureate bust right
Rev.: GENIO POPVLI ROMANI; genius standing left holding patera and cornucopia 
Ref.: RIC VI 17a 
Ex James Pickering Collection of Romano-British Coins

[kapphnwn]

I like the follis (nummis) They are big impressive coins and can have interesting obverse portraits. Also they tend to have not as many problems associated with them  like sestertii. 

Constantius I As Caesar Lugdunum 301-303 AD Obv Bust left laureate draped with lions skim amd holding club over right shoulder.  Rv Genius of the Roman people standing left cradling cornucopia with left hand and sacrificing over altar with right. RIC 147 9.11 grms 26 mm Photo by W. Hansen

Probably not that early as this denomination goes but still very impressive. Constantius was the junior member in the House of Hercules. So it is somewhat appropriate that he is seen her as the living embodiment of Hercules.  

[wittwolff]

Nice coin, the pieces of Severus II. as Augustus are quite rare and I sadly couldnt aquire one yet. The latest minted example of this type I got is a bit later in the name of Constantine as Augustus in the Ostia mint so during or shortly after the reign of Maxentius there:

Emperor Constantine - Follis - Ostia mint

Obv.: IMP C CONSTANTINVS P F AVG

Rev.: GENIO POP ROM

 

[Al Kowsky]

This is the latest LRB I have with GENIO that's photographed. 

Maximinus II, London Mint, 1st Officina, AD 310-312. AE Nummus: 4.28 gm, 22 mm, 7 h. RIC 209b.

[SteveJBrinkman]

Warren,  As usual, an excellent example from the Cyzicus mint.  Well centered on a large flan.

Here is my most recent acquisition, A Nummus of Severus from the London mint:

Obverse: SEVERVS NOBILIS C; Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Severus II to right.
Reverse:  GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI The Genius of the Roman people standing front, head to left, holding patera in his right hand and cornucopiae in his left  
Mint: London  
Weight:  9.45 g., 29mm  
Reference:  RIC 63a (London), C&T 4.02.019  
Provenance:  Leu Auction 12 Lot 1541. May 15, 2022

Edited July 24, 2022 by SteveJBrinkman

[Jims,Coins]

Bronze coin (AE Follis) minted at S*=Rome during the reign of MAXIMIANUS between 299 - 300 A.D. Obv. IMP.C.MAXIMIANVS.P.F.AVG.: Rev. GENIO.POPV-LI. ROMANI.: Genius standing l., modius on head, naked but for chlamys over l. shoulder, r. holding patera, l. cornucopia. RCS #3631. RIC VI #96b pg. 361.

 

- Bronze coin (AE Follis) minted at ANT=Antiochia during the reign of CONSTANTIUS I between 300 - 301 A.D. as Caesar. Obv. FL.VAL.CONSTANTIVS.NOB.CAES.: Rev. GENIO.POPV-LI. ROMANI.: Genius standing l., modius on head, naked but for chlamys over l. shoulder, r. holding patera (from which liquor flows) l. cornucopia. RCS #3673. RIC VI #55a pg. 620.

 

Bronze coin (AE Follis) minted at .TS. =Thessalonica during the reign of GALERIUS, as Caesar, between 302-303 A.D. Obv. GAL.VAL.MAXIMIANVS.NOB.CAES.; Rev. GENIO.POPVLI. ROMANI. Genius standing l., modius on head, naked but for chlamys over l. shoulder, r. holding patera, (from which liqueur flows), l. cornucopia. RCS #3709. RICVI #26b pg. 513. DVM #29.

 

Bronze coin (AE Follis) minted at ANT=Antiochia during the reign of SEVERUS II between 306 - 307 A.D. Obv. IMP.C.FL.VAL.SEVERVS.P.F.AVG. Laureate head r. Rev. GENIO.POPVLI-ROMANI. Genius stg. l. modius on head, naked but for chlamys over l. shoulder, r. holding patera, l cornucopia. DVM #8.

 

Bronze coin (AE Quarter Follis) minted at Siscia during the reign of SEVERUS II, as Caesar, between 305 - 306 A.D. Obv. SEVERVS.NOB. C. Laureate head r. Rev. GENIO.POP-VLI-ROMANI. Genius stg. l. modius on head, naked but for chlamys over l. shoulder, r. holding patera, l. cornucopia. RICVI #171a pg.475. DVM #13. Obv. Centered low, Rev. nearly centered, legends generally weak, moderately grainy brown surfaces, decent portrait; scarce.

 

 

Edited July 28, 2022 by Jims,Coins
edited pictures

[Al Kowsky]

20 hours ago, Valentinian said:

GENIO POPVLI ROMANI folles (nummi) of the First and Second Tetrarchies are among the most common Roman coins. They have the virtue of large size. This one is of Severus II as Augustus from shortly after the Second Tetrarchy. 

28 mm. 10.93 grams.
Severus II, Caesar 305-306, Augustus 306-307 (i.e. after Constantius died).
RIC VI Cyzicus 27b "c. 307, early"  Sear IV 14674.

The reverse type was introduced c. 294 in the coin reform of Diocletian. Few were issued after the Second Tetrarchy (defined by the reign of Constantius as Augustus). This is one of them. 

There is a web site with several pages on the GENIO POPVLI ROMANI type:
http://augustuscoins.com/ed/tetrarchy/Diocletianfolles.html

Coins of the tetrarchies are introduced here:
http://augustuscoins.com/ed/tetrarchy/

I love these hefty coins and wish you would show us some of yours!

 

Valentinian, Your nummus has an attractive patina is is quite hefty for a late issue ☺️. I've probably posted most of my nummi more than once on this website 🥱, but will post again a group of nummi issued under Constantius I, my favorite emperor of the 1st tetrarchy. All these coins are from different mints & all were struck while he was Caesar, except the last one issued as Augustus.

This nummus was struck at Officina #1, AD 301-303.

Edited July 24, 2022 by Al Kowsky
correction

[Molag Bal]

I have only one with the shorter GENIO POP ROM legend.

Maximian BI Nummus. Lugdunum, AD 308-309. IMP C VAL MAXIMIANVS P F AVG, laureate and cuirassed bust to right / GENIO POP ROM, Genius, wearing modius on head, standing to left, holding patera over altar and cornucopiae; CI in left field, H over S in right field, PLC in exergue. RIC VI 288. 5.98g, 27mm, 7h.

[DonnaML]

I don't actively collect later Roman Imperial bronze/billon coins anymore, but I do have a few Genio Popvli examples:

Diocletian, silvered AE Follis/Nummus, 294-295 AD, Nicomedia Mint. Obv. Laureate head right, IMP CC VAL DIOCLETIANVS PF AVG/ Rev. Genius standing left, pouring out patera & holding cornucopiae, GENIO POPVLI ROMANI, mintmark SMN (Nicomedia). RIC VI 27a p. 556), Sear RCV IV 12788, ERIC II 539, Cohen 106.  27.8 mm., 8.6 g.

Maximian, silvered AE Follis/Nummus, 297-98 AD, Heraclea Mint (1^st Officina). Obv. Laureate head right, IMP C MA MAXIMIANVS PF AVG / Rev. Genius standing left holding cornucopiae in left hand and pouring libation from patera in right hand, GENIO POPVLI ROMANI; HTA in exergue. RIC V-2 Heraclea 19b, Sear RCV IV 13265. 28 mm., 10.26 g.

Constantius I Chlorus Caesar (father of Constantine I), Billon Follis/Nummus, 296-297 AD, Heraclea Mint (3^rd Officina). Obv. Laureate head right, FL VAL CONSTANTIVS NOB CAES / Rev. Genius wearing modius on head, standing left, nude, chlamys draped over left shoulder, holding cornucopiae in left hand and pouring libation from patera in right hand, GENIO POPV-L-I ROMANI; mintmark HT Γ [gamma] [Γ= 3^rd Officina] in exergue. RIC VI Heraclea 18a (p. 531), Sear RCV IV 14061.  29 mm., 9.91 g.

Galerius, AE Follis/Nummus, 305-306 AD, Cyzicus Mint (4^th Officina). Obv. Laureate head right, IMP C GAL VAL MAXIMIANVS P F AVG/ Rev. Genius, wearing modius on head, nude, chlamys draped over left shoulder, standing left, holding cornucopiae in left hand and pouring libation from patera in right hand, GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI; mintmark K Δ [K = Cyzicus, Delta = 4^th Officina] in exergue. RIC VI Cyzicus 21b & 25a (pp. 582, 584), Sear RCV IV 14546, Cohen 81.  27.8 mm., 9.65 g. 12 h. Ex. Giovanni Dattari Collection (before 1923); Ex. Jesus Vico 2018.

 

Finally, a "GENIO" without the POPVLI that otherwise looks like all the others:

Maximinus II (Daia) Caesar (nephew of Galerius), AE Follis/Nummus, 308-309 AD, Antioch Mint (2^nd Officina). Obv. Laureate head right, GAL VAL MAXIMINVS NOB CAES/ Rev. Genius standing left with chlamys over left shoulder and modius on head, holding cornucopiae in left arm and holding patera, from which libations flow, in extended right hand; crescent in upper left field and S [= 2^nd Officina] in right field; GENIO CA-ESARIS*[star]; in exergue, mintmark ANT [=Antioch]. RIC VI 103 (p. 631), Sear RCV IV 14725, Cohen 40-41. 25 mm., 6.90 g.

 Does anyone know the reason for the different legend?

Edited July 26, 2022 by DonnaML

[Heliodromus]

8 hours ago, DonnaML said:

Does anyone know the reason for the different legend?

When Diocletian had introduced the nummus with his coinage reform of 294 AD, his initial types were  GENIO POPVLI ROMANI, celebrating the genius of the roman people, issued from all mints, and also a novel tetrarchic GENIO AVGG ET CAESS NN type (celebrating the genius of the collective tetrarchs), only issued only from Cyzicus and Nicomedia.

A little later c.307-308 (before the conference at Carnuntum), with the second tetrarchy then spiraling out of control, Galerius appears to have wanted to emphasize the legitimate tetrarchs and pecking order, and apparently to hell with the roman people, so he reformed the coinage dropping the GENIO POPVLI ROMANI type and adding differentiated types for the augusti and caesars, initially GENIO IMPERATORIS and GENIO CAESARIS, then quickly adding GENIO AVGVSTI used by some mints as an alternative to GENIO IMPERATORIS.

Galerius' eastern caesar, Maximinus II, who controlled the Antioch mint, naturally followed Galerius and issued these same GENIO IMPERATORIS/AVGVSTI and CAESARIS types (and a brief GENIO FIL AVGG for Constantine) up to his death in 313 AD.

These GENIO (roughly "guarding spirit") types in general go quite a long way back, for example with Nero having issued a GENIO AVGVSTI type, and Hadrian a GENIO P.R. aureus (the first GENIO POP. ROM. ?).

 

[John Conduitt]

My latest...perhaps tied with my Severus as Caesar (305-306).

Galerius as Augustus Follis, 305-307London. Bronze, 26mm, 9.59g. Laureate and armoured bust of Galerius right, seen from three quarters forward; IMP MAXIMIANVS PF AVG. Genius standing left, chlamys on left shoulder, holding a patera in the right hand and a cornucopia in the left hand; GENIO POPV-LI ROMANI (RIC 52b).