CONSTANTINE, Radiate Sun Worship, Old Rome, Winter Solstice, RARE Roman Coin

Description

Constantinian Dynasty
Constantine I
had four sons whom he originally designated as Caesars.
His first wife,
Minervina
, bore him his eldest son named
Crispus
. He was made Caesar while his three half-brothers (whose mother was
Fausta
) were very young.
Constantine
had Crispus killed for reasons that are unclear today, but it is strongly suspected that his second wife, Fausta, had something to do with it so that her sons could move ahead of
Crispus
into the position of Emperor.  Subsequently,
Constantine's
remaining sons,
Constantine II, Constantius II, and Constans
, each became a Roman Emperor after disposing of most of the cousins.
CONSTANTINE I (the Great), Roman Emperor 309-337 A.D.
Constantine the Great
is known as the father of the Constantinian Dynasty. He is known as the first emperor to convert to Christianity.  Constantine had a part in issuing the Edict of Milan which proclaimed religious tolerance for all religions across the empire. Constantine was a very successful general starting with his defeat of two other emperors, Maxentius and Licinius, during civil wars.  He then led successful campaigns against the Franks, Alamanni, Visigoths, and Sarmatians during his reign.  He built a new imperial residence in the ancient city of Byzantium, renaming it Constantinople.  This city would later be the capital of the Eastern Roman Empire for over 1000 years.  As a result, Constantine was also known as the founder of the Eastern Roman Empire.  Little is really known about Constantine's conversion to Christianity.  It was his sons who used Christian iconography on some of their coins.  There are two well-known stories about his vision of the cross in the sky before a big battle (starting the tradition of the use of the chi-rho symbol in military, state and religious events) and his deathbed baptism.
SOLI INVICTUS
Sol – Roman Sun God
Sol was the solar deity of the Roman religion.
He was worshipped starting in the Roman Republic period as
Sol Indiges
, and then as
Sol Invictus (“Unconquered Sun”)
during the reign of Elagabalus. Sol came into great prominence in Roman religion in the late third century under Emperor Aurelian.
Sol's whip is the one he uses to drive his sun-chariot up into the sky. His hand gesture, later to become an indispensable aspect of the Unconquered Sun, may be a greeting.
Sol Invictus
means "unconquered sun".  The Sol (Sun god) cult of worship was one of the more popular religious cults during this time in the Roman Empire. The
Feast of Sol Invicta
was celebrated on December 25, the Roman date of the winter solstice. It was considered to be the day the Sun proved itself to be "unconquered" despite the shortening of daylight hours. The Latin name for the festival was
Dies Natalis Solis Invicti
, "the birthday of the unconquered sun."
This coin depicts Sol (with a radiate head like that of the Emperor in his obverse portrait) riding a quadriga, a "four horse chariot of the gods".  Within a hundred years (after the Constantinian Dynasty and into the reign of Theodosius), this cult had been banned by the Roman government, which had proclaimed Christianity as the state religion.  The festival had been turned into Christmas (the new birthdate of Christ).
This coin was minted in the ancient Roman Capital city of
Rome
in the
2nd (S for SECUNDA
)
officina
.
CONSTANTINE I,  AE Follis (19-20 mm, 2.13 gm)
OBV:
IMP CONSTANTINVS PF AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right
REV:
SOLI IN-V-ICTO COMITI, Sol standing half-left, chlamys across left shoulder, holding globe and raising right hand; Left field wreath
EXE:  R S    Rome mint    RIC 97    317-318 A.D.
rated RARE 3
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