Dupondius Marcus Aurelius - special issue

MARCUS AURELIUS. AE Dupondius. Rome, 161 AD. Obv. IMP CAES M AVREL ANTONINVS AVG P M. Radiated head right Rev. CONCORD AVGVSTOR TR P XV / COS III SC Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus clasping hands. RIC 798; Cohen 49 Special issue commemorating the accession of the co-emperors Aurelius and Verus. On the death of Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius became co-emperor with his younger colleague, Lucius Verus, the son of Aelius, Hadrian’s first choice as his heir. There is, in fact, a distinct possibility that Lucius Verus was Hadrian’s grandson. To cement the ties between the two emperors, Marcus Aurelius arranged the marriage of his daughter Lucilla to Verus shortly after they came to the throne. Since at that time Lucilla was only 12, the actual marriage was delayed until 164. This coin shows one of the favorite reverse types of the joint reign: the two emperors clasping hands in cordial friendship. They had distinctly different personalities, Verus was much more casual and pleasure loving, but there never seem to have been any serious problems between them. [Leu] Appears to be like a small medallion with heavier weight, special flan and engravings. See other ex with similar characteristics and style: - Lanz 114 with similar style, 16.41 gr.: [IMG]http://www.acsearch.info/images/30_m/298155.jpg[/IMG] - New York Sale auction XXV, 14.52 gr.: [IMG]http://www.acsearch.info/images/44_m/432163.jpg[/IMG] TR. POT. XVI (after 10 December 161 AD) - Artemide XXII, 14.81 gr. It looks like all these coins belong to the same emission, though spread over Tribunicia Potestate XV and XVI, before and after 10 December 161 AD. Emmanuel de Vaissiere collection (Paris Drouot 15 February 1995). Emmanuel de Vaissiere (1825-1911) was a sub-prefect of Mauriac at the time of Napoleon III, fond of litterature, history, archeology and numismatics, a typical 19th cent. scholar. He resided in his chateau of Vasse', where he died on 15 February 1911, aged 87.