Rare and extremely desirable denarius, one of the shortest reigning Roman Emperors, Didius Julianus stayed on the throne for just 2 months.
Roman Imperial
Didius Julianus (193), Denarius 193, Rome mint
Obverse: head of the emperor facing right
IMP CAES M DID IVLIAN AVG
Reverse: Emperor standing to the left, holding the globe
RECTOR ORBIS
Weight 2.5 g
After the death of Pertinax, a frantic search for an imperial successor began. The imperial guard, which was in fact in power, decided to "make amends" to Pertinax in the most selfish way, namely by auctioning the throne! Two of Rome's richest senators, Didius Julianus and Sulpicianus, bid fervently up to a total of about 25,000 Sestertius. The bidding was won by Julianus, who was immediately declared the winner amid the joyful tumult of soldiers who had won a duke's sum for themselves. Julianus, however, had sufficient cause to worry from the outset, for as soon as news of this "travesty of the Emperor's election" reached the various legions scattered throughout the empire, the generals denounced the new emperor and immediately set out for Rome to seek a chance for themselves. Septimius Severus was the first to reach the capital, quickly overthrowing and killing Julianus using his Praetorians, then defeating his remaining rivals in a bloody and protracted civil war.
Due to such short reigns, officials of the Roman Mint barely had time to prepare new stamps before the order came to throw them all out and start working on others, but for Septimius Severus. Nevertheless, there are several types of coins left of Julianus, even gold coins, and all of them are highly valued and coveted by collectors around the world.
