86 | Roman Empire

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AULUS VITELLIS. Denarius. (Ar. 3.49g / 19mm). 69 AD Rome. Anv: A VITELLIVS GERM IMP AVG TR P. Bust laureate to the right of Vitellius. Rev: LIBERTAS RESTITVTA. Libertas shelf to the right carrying crown and certo. (RIC 105). VF. Beautiful and rare specimen.

Along with Galba, Vespasian and Otto, Vitellius is the fourth emperor, third in chronological order, of the well-known year of the four emperors (69 AD) and although he was appointed emperor by the legions of Lower Germania who refused to recognize Galba It was not until his death and Otto's death that he was officially recognized as emperor. His mandate lasted from April 17, 69 AD to December 22 of that same year. He was the first emperor to add the honorific cognomen of Germanicus without including that of Caesar.
He stood out for a successful and somewhat atypical military career, after the consulate in 57 AD he was appointed Arvale priest and then in 60 AD he was appointed proconsul of Africa; his military career had a turning point with the unexpected appointment by Galba as commander of the army of the Lower Germania.
The portraits in Vitellius' coin, due to his brevity on the throne, follow the line set by Galba, realism and few concessions to any type of formal idealization but always within very high standards of quality and refinement.