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✦ LYCAONIA • ICONIUM ✦ TITUS AS CAESAR AD 69–79 Iconium | Bronze AE20 | NGC XF Marble portrait of Titus, circa AD 80, Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek, Copenhagen. A Roman provincial bronze of Titus as Caesar, issued at Iconium in Lycaonia during the reign of Vespasian, combining the portrait of Rome\'s imperial heir with the city\'s traditional image of Perseus. ✦ ✦ ✦ ✦ Titus as Caesar
Although Titus later ruled as Roman emperor from AD 79–81, this particular coin type belongs to the reign of his father Vespasian and depicts Titus in his earlier role as Caesar and imperial heir. The appropriate historical dating for the issue is therefore AD 69–79.
✦ Coin Details Person Titus as Caesar Reigning Emperor Vespasian Date AD 69–79 Region Lycaonia City Iconium / Claudiconium Metal Bronze Diameter 20 mm Weight 5.77 g Reference RPC II 1608; SNG BN 2285 NGC Grade XF Strike 4/5 Surface 5/5 NGC Certification 8661969-003 The Design Obverse — Titus as Caesar Laureate and cuirassed bust of Titus facing right. The Greek inscription identifies him as “Emperor Titus Caesar.” At this point Titus was the designated heir of his father, Emperor Vespasian. Reverse — Perseus Heroic bust of Perseus facing right, wearing a Phrygian-style cap, with the harpa positioned behind him. In Greek mythology, the harpa was the curved weapon associated with Perseus and his defeat of Medusa. The Greek civic legend ΚΛΑΥΔΕΙΚΟΝΙΕΩΝ means “of the Claudians of Iconium.” ✦ Rome & Iconium
Roman provincial coinage often brought two identities together. The emperor or imperial heir appeared on one side, while the issuing city retained local gods, heroes, legends, and traditions on the other.
This coin is an especially clear example. Titus represents the authority and succession of the Flavian dynasty, while Perseus belongs to the older Greek heroic imagery repeatedly used on the coinage of Iconium.
Iconium A City of Central Anatolia
Ancient Iconium stood in central Asia Minor at the site of modern Konya, Turkey. Although its cultural background was strongly Phrygian, Roman administration commonly associated it with Lycaonia.
The city occupied a fertile and strategically important location along routes crossing the Anatolian interior and developed into one of the major urban centers of the region.
Under Emperor Claudius, Iconium received the honorary name Claudiconium. That imperial honor remained visible in the city\'s civic identity and appears directly on the reverse legend of this coin.
Perseus & the Harpa
Perseus was one of the celebrated heroes of Greek mythology, remembered above all for defeating the Gorgon Medusa.
The weapon shown behind his head is the harpa, traditionally represented as a curved sword or sickle-like blade associated with the killing of Medusa.
Perseus had appeared on Iconium\'s coinage before the Flavian period and would continue to appear afterward, making him a recognizable element of the city\'s civic visual language.
Titus Caesar, Commander & Imperial Heir
Titus was born in Rome in AD 39, the eldest son of the future emperor Vespasian.
His military career brought him east during the First Jewish–Roman War. After Vespasian was proclaimed emperor in AD 69, command of the campaign passed to Titus.
In AD 70, Titus commanded the Roman siege of Jerusalem. Roman forces captured the city and the Second Temple was destroyed, creating one of the defining events of the history of Roman Judaea and the ancient Jewish world.
✦ The Triumph of Titus The victory in Judaea memorialized in Rome Relief from the Arch of Titus showing Roman soldiers carrying spoils from the Jerusalem Temple, including the menorah. From Caesar to Emperor
Throughout Vespasian\'s reign, Titus was positioned as his father\'s successor. When Vespasian died in AD 79, Titus inherited the imperial throne.
His reign lasted only a little more than two years and coincided with major disasters, including the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 and a major fire in Rome the following year.
Titus also oversaw the completion and opening of the Flavian Amphitheatre — the Colosseum. He died in AD 81 and was succeeded by his younger brother Domitian.
Titus Timeline AD 39 — Titus is born in Rome.
AD 66–69 — Serves in the Roman campaign in Judaea under Vespasian.
AD 69 — Vespasian becomes emperor; Titus becomes Caesar and imperial heir.
AD 69–79 — This Iconium coin type is issued with Titus as Caesar.
AD 70 — Titus captures Jerusalem; the Second Temple is destroyed.
AD 79 — Titus succeeds Vespasian as emperor.
AD 79 — Mount Vesuvius erupts and buries Pompeii and Herculaneum.
AD 80 — The Colosseum is inaugurated under Titus.
AD 81 — Titus dies and is succeeded by Domitian. ✦ Condition NGC XF • Strike 4/5 • Surface 5/5
NGC Certification Number: 8661969-003
This coin has been certified and encapsulated by NGC Ancients. Please review all listing photographs carefully for the exact coin and holder included, including strike, surfaces, centering, patina, and overall appearance.
✦ Titus Before the Imperial Throne
This bronze captures Titus at a defining point in his career: not yet Augustus, but already Caesar, military commander, and acknowledged heir to the Flavian dynasty. On one side stands the future Roman emperor; on the other, Perseus preserves the older heroic identity of Iconium. Together they make this coin a compact record of how Roman imperial authority and local Greek tradition could meet on the coinage of a provincial city.
WESTBRIDGE COIN ✦ ✦ ✦ Historical images are included for educational and historical context and are not part of the item offered. Titus portrait: Marie-Lan Nguyen / Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0.
Arch of Titus relief: Wikimedia Commons.
