Nero, 54-68. Aureus (Gold, 19 mm, 7.60 g, 3 h), Lugdunum, 60. NERO•CAESAR•AVG•IMP• Bare head of Nero to right. Rev. PONTIF•MAX•TR•P•VI•COS•IIII•P•P• Oak wreath containing EX S C. BMC 21. Calicó 426. CBN 26. Cohen 213. Giard 19. RIC 19. A lovely example with a bold portrait. A few minor marks and small scrapes, otherwise, about extremely fine.


This lovely and well-struck aureus of Nero features his youthful portrait on the obverse, and an oak-wreath on the reverse, surrounding the legend EX S C (= 'by order of the Senate of Rome') along with Nero’s titles and honors. The portrait of Nero is bare, without a laurel wreath, and is both quite handsome and strikingly similar to the larger-than-life marble head of Nero now housed in the Glyptothek in Munich. Although he had just murdered his mother the year before, one might expect Nero’s portrait to convey a fiendish expression, yet it does not. Instead, he is depicted with a serene and majestic look, both refined and cultured - a stark contrast to his true character.

The oak-wreath on the reverse is typically associated with military conquests. However, in this case, its use is somewhat tangential to actual military achievements, as neither Boudicca's Revolt in Britain nor Corbulo's campaigns against Parthian interference in Armenia had been successfully concluded. Therefore, its use as a type here seems rather inappropriate. While unlikely, it might be connected to Nero’s construction of his new palace, the Domus Transitoria, which was designed to link his various imperial estates, including the Gardens of Maecenas.