Julian II. AD 360-363. Æ (28.5mm, 9.37 g, 11h). Sirmium mint, 2nd officina. Struck AD 361-363. Pearl-diademed, draped, and cuirassed bust right / Bull standing right; two stars above; *BSIRM(branch). RIC VIII 107; LRBC 1621. Glossy brown patina, traces of silvering, light green deposits, minor flan crack. Choice EF.
Once of Julian’s reforms was the introduction of a new coin of silvered bronze, sometimes termed a “double majorina.” This remarkable piece, struck at the mint of Sirmium in modern Serbia, bears a striking portrait of Julian wearing a beard, much against the prevailing fashion of the day and an open expression of his adherence to the “old ways,” including Paganism. The reverse depiction of a sacrificial bull with two stars overhead, coupled with the legend evolking the “Security of the Republic,” probably alludes to the restoration of the old Roman religion as providing new strength and security to the state.
