Ancient Roman Silver Coin of Emperor Elagabalus (Most Controversial Roman Emperor)

Own a Silver Coin from the Teenage Emperor Who Tried to Replace Jupiter With a Syrian Sun God

A real silver denarius of Elagabalus — the 14-year-old high priest of a Syrian solar deity who became Roman emperor through his grandmother's conspiracy, scandalized Rome with his religious reforms and personal conduct, and was assassinated by the Praetorian Guard at 18. NGC certified.

From $175.50

✓ NGC Certified
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☀️ From the reign of the teenage emperor who brought a sacred black stone from Syria to Rome and attempted to install his eastern sun god above Jupiter as chief deity of the empire
🏛 Reverse depicts Roman deities, imperial virtues, or eastern religious references — the visual language of a reign that tried to rewrite Rome's entire religious identity
🤲 Struck AD 218–222 — four years of extraordinary controversy ending in assassination at age 18. NGC certified.

Own This Piece of History

Why This Coin Matters

The story of Elagabalus begins not with the emperor himself but with his grandmother Julia Maesa — the formidable sister of Julia Domna who had lost her political influence after Caracalla's assassination in AD 217. Determined to restore her family's imperial position, she orchestrated a military conspiracy claiming that her fourteen-year-old grandson Varius Avitus Bassianus was the illegitimate son of the popular Caracalla. The Danubian legions — always susceptible to claims connecting a candidate to beloved predecessors — proclaimed him emperor. He took the name Elagabalus, after the Syrian solar deity he served as high priest at Emesa.

What Rome got was unlike anything it had experienced. The new emperor arrived in the capital with a sacred black conical stone — the baetyl of the god Elagabal — and immediately began constructing a new religious hierarchy with his deity at its summit, above Jupiter himself. He arranged a symbolic marriage between the sacred stone and the statue of Vesta, Rome's most ancient sacred goddess, transferring her sacred objects to his new temple. He consulted the stone before making state decisions. He forced senators and magistrates to attend his religious ceremonies wearing eastern priestly robes. The Senate, the army, and the old Roman aristocracy watched with mounting horror.

His personal conduct scandalized Rome further — ancient sources describe behavior so far outside Roman social norms that modern historians debate how much was reality and how much was hostile senatorial propaganda amplified after his death. What is not disputed is that by AD 222, the Praetorian Guard had had enough. They assassinated Elagabalus and his mother in a camp latrine and dragged their bodies through the streets of Rome. He was eighteen years old. His cousin Alexander Severus was proclaimed emperor immediately, and the religious revolution was reversed within days. This denarius was struck during those four extraordinary years. Certified by NGC.

Perfect for:

• Collectors of Severan dynasty, Crisis of the Third Century, and Roman imperial silver denarii
• History lovers drawn to Elagabalus, eastern religion in Rome, and the most controversial reign in imperial history
• NGC certified Roman silver and unusual emperor portrait enthusiasts
• Anyone seeking a historically extraordinary, certified piece from Rome's most sensational and brief imperial reign

What You'll Receive

• One authentic Roman silver denarius of Elagabalus
• Denomination: AR Denarius (standard Roman silver)
• NGC certified for authenticity and preservation
• Struck AD 218–222 — similar to examples shown (each coin is unique)

Buy with Confidence

• Guaranteed authentic ancient coin
• Carefully sourced and verified
• 30-day return policy
• Secure shipping from the U.S.

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