Maximianus Herculius Genius Cult protection Rare genuine Ancient Roman coin

Description

One original ancient Roman bronze coin of:
Maximianus Herculeus, Augustus 286-305, 307-308, and 310 AD
Struck -
297-299 AD
. Heraclea mint
.
AE follis 26-27mm. 10.07gm. Genuine brown patina. (Good VF) Well centered nice specimen.
Very nice and rare inclusion to the finest collection.
Obverse:/
IMP C M A MAXIMIMANVS PF AVG, laureate head right
.
Reverse:
/ GENIO POPVLI ROMANI, Genius standing left, naked, but for chlamys over left shoulder (falls low), holding patera from which liquid flows and cornucopiae. Mintmark HA
Authenticity guaranteed.
The Genius was a protection spirit, analogous to the guardian angels invoked by the Church of Rome. The belief in such spirits existed in Greece and at Rome. The Greeks called them Daemons, and appear to have believed in them from the earliest times, though Homer does not mention them. Hesiod says that the Daemons were 30,000 in number, and that they dwelled on earth unseen by mortals, as the ministers of Zeus, and as the guardians of men and justice. He further conceives them to be the souls of the righteous men who lived in the golden age of the world. The Greek philosophers took up this idea, and developed a complete theory of daemons. Thus we read in Plato, that daemons are assinged to men at the moment of their birth, that they accompany men through life, and after death conduct their souls to Hades. Pindar, in several passages of the spirit watching over the fate of man from the hour of his birth. The daemons are further described as ministers and companions of the gods, who carry the prayers of men to the gods, and the gifts of the gods to men, and accordingly float in immense numbers in the space between heaven and earth. There was also a distinct class of daemons, who were exclusively the ministers of the gods.
The Romans seem to have received their notions respecting the genii from the Etruscans, though the name Genius itself is Latin (it is connected with
gi-gn-o, gen-ui,
and equivalent in meaning to generator or father). The genii of the Romans are the powers which produce life (
dii genitales
), and accompany man through it as his second or spiritual self. They were further not confined to man, but every living being, animal as well as man, and every place had its genius. Every human being at his birth obtained (
sortitur
) a genius, who he worshipped as
sanctus et sanctissimus deus
, especially on his birthday, with libations of wine, incense, and garlands of flowers. The bridal bed was sacred to the genius, on account of his connection with generation, and the bed itself was called
lectus genialis
. On other merry occasions, also , sacrifices were offered to the genius, and to indulge in merriment was not unfrequently expressed by
genio indulgere, genium curare,
or
placarae.
The whole body of the Roman people had its own genius, who is often seen represented on coins of Hadrian and Trajan. He was worshipped on sad as well as joyous occasions; thus, sacrifices were offered to him at the beginning of the 2nd year of the war with Hannibal. The genii are usually represented in works of art as winged beings. The genius of a place appears in the form of a serpent eating fruit placed before him.
Maximian
(
Latin
:
Marcus Aurelius Valerius Maximianus Herculius Augustus
; c. 250 – c. July 310) was
Roman Emperor
from 286 to 305. He was
Caesar
from 285 to 286, then
Augustus
from 286 to 305. He shared the latter title with his co-emperor and superior,
Diocletian
, whose political brain complemented Maximian's military brawn. Maximian established his residence at
Trier
but spent most of his time on campaign. In late 285, he suppressed rebels in Gaul known as the
Bagaudae
. From 285 to 288, he fought against
Germanic tribes
along the
Rhine
frontier. Together with Diocletian, he launched a
scorched earth
campaign deep into
Alamannic
territory in 288, temporarily relieving the Rhine provinces from the threat of Germanic invasion.
The man he appointed to police the
Channel
shores,
Carausius
, rebelled in 286, causing the secession of Britain and northwestern Gaul. Maximian failed to oust Carausius, and his invasion fleet was destroyed by storms in 289 or 290. Maximian's subordinate,
Constantius
, campaigned against Carausius' successor,
Allectus
, while Maximian held the
Rhine frontier
. The rebel leader was ousted in 296, and Maximian moved south to combat piracy near
Hispania
and
Berber
incursions in
Mauretania
. When these campaigns concluded in 298, he departed for Italy, where he lived in comfort until 305. At Diocletian's behest, Maximian abdicated on May 1, 305, gave the Augustan office to Constantius, and retired to southern Italy.
In late 306, Maximian took the title of Augustus again and aided his son
Maxentius
' rebellion in Italy. In April 307, he attempted to depose his son, but failed and fled to the court of Constantius' successor,
Constantine
(Maximian's step-grandson and son-in-law), in Trier. At the Council of
Carnuntum
in November 308, Diocletian and his successor,
Galerius
, forced Maximian to renounce his imperial claim again. In early 310, Maximian attempted to seize Constantine's title while the emperor was on campaign on the Rhine. Few supported him, and he was captured by Constantine in Marseille. Maximian killed himself in mid-310 on Constantine's orders. During Constantine's war with Maxentius, Maximian's image was purged from all public places. However, after Constantine ousted and killed Maxentius, Maximian's image was rehabilitated, and he was deified.
Please make your payments on time. Payment methods for USA buyers:< PAYPAL
Payment methods for International buyers - including Canada: PAYPAL  contact us for more info.
Payments must be received within 7 days from the end of auction (14 days for international).
Please be sure to include item # & address with your payment. IF REQUESTING A CERTIFICATE PLEASE DO SO AT THE TIME OF PAYMENT.
Pay me securely with any major credit card through PayPal!
Items will be shipped within 1 to 3 business days of purchase completion.
FREE FIRST CLASS DOMESTIC MAIL.
INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING - .99
(REGISTERED-.00) WE COMBINE SHIPPING.
If you would like to have special shipping, please contact us.
All items will be sent out in protected envelope and boxed if necessary
..
YOU ARE BIDDING ON AN ANCIENT ITEM(S) AS DESCRIBED AND PICTURED ABOVE!!!
Every item offered by cameleoncoins is unconditionally guaranteed to be genuine & authentic.
We can provide a certificate of authenticity or extended return policy by request only!!!
If in the unlikely event that an item is found to be reproduction, full return privileges are within 14 days of receiving the coins.
We will promptly offer a full refund without hesitation or hassle.
Please read the auction page prior to contacting US.
© AP6.0