Today's News is Tomorrow's Coinage

COINS AS HISTORY IN YOUR HANDS

- MIKE GAROFALO

Coins are more than a medium of exchange; they are small mirrors of big history, and historical events have influenced coinage since time immemorial. I was reminded of that recently when an assassination attempt was made on a presidential candidate in the United States. Coins reflect overthrows, coups, wars and untimely demises.

Over the last 2,000 years, coin designs evolved for a wide variety of reasons. From changing emperors to assassinations to starting or ending world wars, coin designs and compositions changed with the circumstances of the world around them.

JULIUS CAESAR'S ASCENT TO POWER AND DEMISE

Let's consider a silver ancient Roman coin struck during the reign of Junius Brutus in 42 B.C.

The prior emperor of Rome was its famed and highly successful general, Julius Caesar. He was a decisive and brilliant Roman general whose armies conquered much of the known world at the time. His legendary successes on the battlefields made him extremely popular with the people of Rome-so much so that he ascended to power easily. A very large part of the populace wanted him to rule. Caesar took increasingly more power, but his desire to control the Roman Republic led to his demise.

At that time, the Roman Senate was appointed by the Emperor, not elected by the populace. Once Caesar had proclaimed himself the Dictator for Life, the Roman Senate plotted his death. His assassination occurred on the Ides of March (March 15th) in 44 B.C.

A coin commemorates that event. The obverse depicts a head of Junius Brutus, while the reverse depicts a Phrygian cap of Freedom with a dagger on each side. Below is the abbreviation EID MAR for the Ides of March, the date on which Caesar was assassinated by Brutus and as many as 60 Roman Senators.