Vabalathus, Usurper

CNG 108, Lot: 663. Estimate $500. Sold for $525. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Vabalathus. Usurper, AD 268-272. Antoninianus (19mm, 3.02 g, 12h). Antioch mint, 2nd officina. 2nd emission, March-May AD 272. Radiate, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Hercules standing right, with lion’s skin draped over right arm, holding club and Apples of the Hesperides; star to left. RIC V 4; Bland, Coinage 20j-k (dies 26/Ive v); BN 1265 var. (star to right). VF, earthen green patina.

The son of Odenathus, the ruler of the rich eastern trade center Palmyra, and his wife Zenobia, Vabalathus was declared king following the murder of his father in AD 267. Since Vabalathus was still in his minority, Zenobia took over as regent, using the confusion following the death of Gallienus to expand Palmyrene power. In AD 269, the Palmyrenes seized control of Egypt and, with it, the Roman grain supply. To bolster her position, Zenobia laid claims to an illustrious ancestry, including Cleopatra VII of Egypt and the legendary Dido of Carthage.

The emperor Aurelian recognized the threat posed by Zenobia and Vabalathus and launched a campaign. In AD 272, Palmyra was sacked and both Zenobia and Vabalathus were captured as they tried to make their way to Persia. The two were to be brought to Rome and paraded in Aurelian’s triumph in AD 274, but apparently only Zenobia survived the journey.