Rome

The highest paid athlete in history - Gaius Appuleius Diocles

Gaius Appuleius Diocles was born in 104 A.D in Lamecum, Portugal the capital city of Lusitania, province of Emerita Augusta (modern-day Mérida, Spain). His father owned a transport business and the family was wealthy. Roman obsession with panem et circenses (bread and games) showed what the people valued, the grain dole and chariot races in the Circus.

Diocles is believed to have started racing at the age of 18 in Ilerda. Life expectancy of a charioteer was short. One such celebrity driver was Scorpus, who won 2,048 races before being killed when he was about 26.

Diocles survived until his retirement at age 42.

Diocles earned 35,863,120 Roman sesterces in his lifetime. The number is inscribed on a monument in Rome, erected for Diocles at the end of his career. A workman's daily wage at the time was 3 to 4 sesterces. The most famous races took place at Circus Maximus in Rome.

Races began when the emperor dropped his napkin and ended seven laps later. Those who didn't get maimed or killed and finished in the top three won prizes. Crashes were called naufragia (a "shipwreck"). Drivers who became entangled in a crash risked being trampled or dragged along the track by his own horses. Charioteers carried a curved knife (falx) to cut their reins. Diocles most commonly raced four-horse chariots, and in most of his races he came from behind to win. Diocles is also notable for owning a rare ducenarius, a horse that had won at least 200 races. Records show that he won 1,462 out of the 4,257 four-horse races.

___________________________________ Caracalla, Geta, and Macrinus

The bad sequel of 'Gladiator' in 2024 featured Caracalla, Geta, and Macrinus. Little of the film reflects history.

A caracallus was a hooded cloak worn by the Celts of Gaul where Septimius Bassianus was born on April 4, 186 CE. Young Caracalla grew up among them and adapted some of their customs. (such as wearing a caracallus) His father, the future emperor Septimius Severus, served as the Imperial governor. Younger brother Geta was born May 27, 189, at Mediolanum (now Milan). The two boys hated one another. In 193, Septimius Severus was the victor in a complex civil war. On the reverse of a rare gold aureus issued about the year 200, the two boys face one another, with the inscription “Eternity of the Empire.”

In December 195, after his father defeated the usurper Pescennius Niger, Caracalla, aged nine, was given the rank of Caesar, designating him an imperial successor. Publius Septimius Geta was given the rank of Caesar at the age of nine. At the age of 10, Caracalla was raised to the rank of Augustus. (effectively co-emperor) Geta was not promoted to Augustus until 209. Severus died February 4, 211. The palace was soon divided into two hostile armed camps. In December 211, Caracalla invited Geta to a meeting on neutral ground – their mother’s palace apartment. Caracalla’s guards stabbed Geta to death.

Caracalla issued a damnatio memoriae and erased Geta’s name and image from Imperial inscriptions and works. His followers were slaughtered.

Geta appears on a superb aureus struck in 201.

Romans were great fans of chariot races held in the Circus Maximus. A hugely desirable brass sestertius of Caracalla dated to 213 depicts the Circus Maximus in rich detail. Strapped for cash, Caracalla turned to the easiest route to replentishing the treasury, debasing currency. His antoninianus was officially valued at two denarii but initially contained silver worth only about one-and-a-half. By collecting taxes in denarii and making payments in antoniniani, the Imperial treasury realized a profit. Ruinous inflation raged for the rest of the century. The antonianus was eventually reduced to trace amounts of silver. Coins of Caracalla’s last years show an increasingly thick neck and heavy beard. Inscriptions hail his victories over Britons and Germans.

Born about 164 of Berber ancestry in North Africa, Macrinus rose to the high rank of Praetorian Prefect under Caracalla. Macrinus seized the throne after arranging the murder of Caracalla. He died April 8, 217 AD aged 29. Macrinus was captured and executed after a reign of about 14 months.

Despite this brief reign, his coin output was prolific. Born about 208, Marcus Opellius Diadumenianus was the son of Macrinus from an uncertain mother.

Caracalla’s aunt, Julia Maesa, bribed the eastern legions to proclaim her 14-year-old grandson Elagabalus as emperor, using the rumor that the boy was actually Caracalla’s son. After Macrinus was killed, Diadumenian fled but was intercepted and beheaded. He was 10 years old. Diadumenian’s head was sent as a trophy to Elagabalus. ___________________________________ Spartacus and Crixus vs Theokoles

Spartacus: Blood and Sand was the first season of television series Spartacus, which premiered on Starz on January 22, 2010. The series was inspired by Spartacus (played by Andy Whitfield), a Thracian gladiator who from 73 to 71 BC led a slave revolt against the Roman Republic. Torn from his homeland and the woman he loves, Spartacus is condemned to the brutal world of the arena where blood and death are prime-time entertainment. The series is among the best ever produced for television. In March 2010, Whitfield was diagnosed with stage IV non-Hodgkin lymphoma. While waiting for Whitfield's treatment and expected recovery, Starz produced a six-part prequel, Spartacus: Gods of the Arena, with only a brief voiceover from the actor. Declared free of cancer in June 2010, a relapse was revealed 3 months later. On 11 September 2011 Whitfield died of non-Hodgkin lymphoma.

___________________________________ Herculaneum beach The beach at the Herculaneum archaeological park, located in Campania, opened in June 2024 after a multi-year restoration project.

Herculaneum lay buried under 35 meters of solidified ash until it was discovered by chance in 1709 as a worker drilled a well for a monastery. Digs in the 1980s and '90s uncovered the skeletons of more than 300 people in stone boathouses near the beach. They died from the heat as they awaited rescue by Pliny the Elder.

Work at the Antica Spiaggia area began in January 2022. It was already partially excavated in the 1980s. Dozens of skeletons were found, including the famed 'Ring Lady,' named for the rings on her fingers. Herculaneum was much closer to Vesuvius than Pompeii, and was buried by pyroclastic surges. Excavations unearthed lavish villas, organic matter such as fruit and bread, wooden furniture, and hundreds of charred papyrus scrolls.

Evidence was found of high temperatures on the skeletons of those found in the arched vaults on the seashore, which is now 500 metres inland, as well as the existence of carbonised wood in the boathouses, which became their tombs. The beach is now about four metres below current sea levels.

In 2021, the skeleton of a man dubbed the “last fugitive,” was found. Its believed he had been attempting to escape toward the sea with his valuable possessions. The man was aged between 40 and 45 and was found with a heavily blackened skull and bones with numerous heat-induced fractures. Under the left arm of the skeleton was a cloth shoulder bag inside which was a wooden box containing objects in metal, pieces of cloth, and traces of gold. He suffered the same fate as the others. The extremely high temperatures of the pyroclastic flow caused human tissue to instantly vaporize and the skeleton was imprisoned in a mass of ash, gas and debris.

Dubbed the ‘Herculaneum 300’, their remains were found just four miles (6.43 km) from Mount Vesuvius. Historians have suggested the group was minutes away from being rescued by Pliny the Elder, commander of the local naval fleet. His nephew, Pliny the Younger, wrote two letters describing the eruption, both of which have great historical significance due to their accurate description of the eruption.

___________________________________ The Torlonia Collection

The Torlonia Collection is the largest private collection of Roman marble sculptures in Italy, and one of the most important private collections of its type in the world. The Art Institute of Chicago announced 'Myth and Marble: Ancient Roman Sculpture from the Torlonia Collection', which will be on view March 15–June 29, 2025. This exhibition features 58 rarely-seen sculptures from the Torlonia Collection that span nine centuries, including 24 newly-restored works that have not been on display in nearly a century. This will be the first time these works have been seen in North America. Built by Franco-Italian banker Prince Giovanni Torlonia and his son Alessandro, the Torlonia Collection became the largest private assembly of ancient Roman sculptures.

Portrait of Hadrian, about 130 CE.

Prince Alessandro opened a museum in Rome in 1876 to showcase the family’s holdings, offering access to small, select groups of visitors.

The museum closed during World War II, leaving the collection largely hidden for decades. 96 Greek and Roman sculptural pieces from the fifth century BCE to the fourth century CE went on display in 2022.

The finest classical statues, busts, sculptures and reliefs from the fifth century BC to the fourth century AD went on display in a palazzo on Rome’s Capitoline Hill.

They constitute a priceless collection of ancient Roman statuary that was amassed by Italy’s aristocratic Torlonia family. Accessible only to a chosen few, the collection became the stuff of legend. Even scholars knew it only from its catalogue, which was compiled in 1884. It is thought to be the largest collection in the world. Part of the Torlonia Collection is revealed to North America for the first time in its history.

One of the highlights of the collection is a stone relief, about 4ft wide and 3ft high, which depicts a busy scene at Portus, ancient Rome’s port on the Tyrrhenian coast.

The Torlonia Marbles embarked on a world tour of museums.

___________________________________ Brutus areus brings $2m

An aureus of Marcus Junius Brutus sold for €1.9 million ($2 million) at a Geneva auction, far exceeding its €800k estimate. Described as “one of the most iconic and historically significant coins in all of Roman history” it is one of 17 known to exist.The coin was minted following Brutus’s 44 B.C.E. murder of Julius Caesar, and before his suicide following defeat in the Battle of Philippi in 42 B.C.E.

The battle, involving up to 200,000 men was the largest of the Roman civil wars. It consisted of two battles in the plain west of the ancient city of Philippi. The first occurred in the first week of October. Brutus faced Octavian, and Antony's forces fought those of Cassius. Cassius comitted suicide after losing, but the overall battle was a draw. A second encounter, on 23 October, finished off Brutus's forces after a hard-fought hand to hand battle. He took his own life in turn, leaving the triumvirate in control of the Roman Republic. ___________________________________ Worst Roman Emperors

Tiberius ruled AD 14–37. He sank into morbid suspicion of everyone around him. He retreated to the island of Capri and revived the ancient accusation of maiestas (treason) and used it to sentence to death anyone he desired. Tiberius living on Capri is recorded as a depraved sexual predator. Tiberius Gold Aureus. Lugdunum. AU Strike 5/5 - Surface 3/5. US$11,150

Caligula ruled from 37–41 CE. He became infamous for his extreme feats of carnage. Nero was his nephew. Caligula was cruel, depraved, and insane. In January 41 CE officers of the Praetorian Guard, led by Cassius Chaerea, killed him. Caligula, formally Gaius, Gold Aureus. Rome, A.D. 40. Laureate head of Gaius facing right, Germanicus, Caligula's father who died in A.D. 19, facing right. Au strike 5/5, surface 2/5. US$45,000.

Nero (AD 54 to 68) debased currency and confiscated senators' property and severely taxed to fund his palace, the Domus Aurea. Rome burned for nine days. Its said Nero used the fire to clear space for his palace. Nero blamed the Christians, executing thousands. Nero Gold Aureus. Lugdunum, A.D. 56-8. Nero facing right, VF, Strike 4/5, Surface 2/5. US$10,800.

Domitian (81–96) was fearful and paranoid. Conspiracy theories consumed him, and some were true. He curtailed the Senate and expelled those he deemed unworthy. He executed officials who opposed his policies and confiscated their property. Domitian was assassinated in 96 CE. Domitian Gold Aureus. Rome. Struck AD 90-91. Superb EF. US$29,500.

Commodus (177–192) was cruel, debauched, and a corrupt megalomaniac who viewed himself as reincarnated Greek gods. He too devalued Roman currency mercilessly, instituting the largest drop in value since Nero. Commodus Gold Aureus. Rome mint. Struck AD 183. Superb EF US$24,500

Elagabalus (218 to 222). Elagabalus's sin was not bloody, but acting unlike any Emperor. Writers told of his sexual perversion, feminity, bisexuality, and transvestism. Elagabalus Gold Aureus. Slow quadriga moving right, on which is set the conical stone of Emesa. Very rare. Graded NGC Ch VF Strike: 5/5 Surface: 2/5. Graffito. Marks. Bent. US$20,000

Caracalla (AD 211–217) dealt brutally with opponents: he exterminated all of them. Caracalla quickly turned the surplus he inherited from his father into a deficit. He was assassinated by a group of army officers, including Praetorian prefect Opellius Macrinus. Caracalla Gold Aureus. Rome mint. Struck AD 213. Near EF. Extremely rare and important. Caracalla renovated the  Circus Maximus in AD 213, and rare aurei and sestertii were issued to celebrate. This aerial view depicts the Circus as it would be seen from the Palatine Hill. US$140,000

Diocletian (AD 284–305) conducted a ruthless persecution of Christians. Diocletian set about it's total eradication. Churches were destroyed, scriptures burnt, and Christians who refused to give up their faith were tortured and executed. Diocletian Gold Aureus. Grade NGC Ch AU Strike: 5/5 Surface: 4/5, edge marks. US$20,000

___________________________________ The Year of the Four Emperors The Year of the Four Emperors, 69 AD, was a year of the Roman Empire in which four emperors ruled in succession: Galba, Otho, Vitellius, and Vespasian. On June 9, 68 AD, Nero was tried in absentia and condemned to death. He met death at his servant's hand, thereby attaining the distinction of being the first Roman Emperor to nearly commit suicide. The four most influential generals in the Empire successively vied for imperial power. Galba was unable to establish his authority. Otho murdered Galba on 15 January with the help of the Praetorian Guard.

Galba - US$64,400

Otho US$191,500 (2005)

Otho faced Vitellius, who had been acclaimed by the legions of the Rhine on 1 January 69. Vitellius won the First Battle of Bedriacum on 14 April. Otho committed suicide the next day. Vespasian was legate of Syria. Vespasian's legions were victorious at the Second Battle of Bedriacum on 24 October. Vitellius was subsequently killed by a mob on 20 December.

Vitellius - Very rare, 10 known. US$43,800

Vespasian US$13,600

Vespasian brought stability to the empire. After his death in 79, he was succeeded by his eldest son Titus, thus becoming the first Roman emperor to be directly succeeded by his own natural son.

___________________________________ Gold of the 12 Caesars The 12 Caesars gold coins are a set of Roman coins featuring portraits of the first twelve Roman emperors. Known as the “Julio-Claudian and Flavian” emperors, they ruled the empire from 49 BCE to 96 CE. The most sought after and among the most valuable of the Twelve Gold Caesars is that of Julius Caesar. Owning an example, in any condition, is an accomplishment.

Aureus struck at a military mint, c.43 B.C. It bears the portraits of Julius Caesar and Octavian (Augustus). Extremely rare. At least $50k. Julius Caesar AV Aureus. Rome, 45 BC. Draped bust of Victory to right. 7.98g, NGC graded AU★ 5/5 - 5/5 among the finest known examples. 36,000 GBP in 2022.

Aureus of Augustus struck at Lugdunum, c.15–12 B.C. Gold Aureus of Augustus struck around 27 to 18 BC. There are 22 surviving examples of heifer reverse aureus, of which 15 are in museums. The coin made 480,000 Euros in 2019 making it one of the world’s most expensive Roman coins.

Tiberius (A.D. 14–37) struck at Lugdunum. Caligula (A.D. 37–41) Aureus struck at Rome, A.D. 37–38. Caligula's portrait appears with his deceased mother, Agrippina Senior.

Claudius (A.D. 41–54) Aureus struck at Rome, A.D. 46–47. Nero (A.D. 54–68) Aureus struck at Rome, A.D. 62–63.

Galba (A.D. 68–69) Aureus struck at Rome. Otho (A.D. 69) Aureus struck at Rome.

Vitellius (A.D. 69) Aureus struck at Rome. Vespasian (A.D. 69–79) Aureus struck at Rome.

Titus (A.D. 79–81) Aureus struck at Rome, A.D. 75. This coin was struck while Titus was Caesar under his father. Domitian (A.D. 81–96) Aureus struck at Rome, A.D. 76.

___________________________________