Septimius Severus               193 - 211 A.D.     

Septimius Severus was the remaining emperor of a bloody shakeout period which saw the violent demise of no less than five emperors in less than two years. A Governor in a sleepy quarter of the Empire, Septimius saw a golden opportunity after the murder of Pertinax (one of the luckless emperors) and with the pretense of avenging his murder he recruited an army and advanced towards Rome. The situation in Rome, meanwhile, was so chaotic that the Senate saw no way out of it but to save their skin by turning tail and declaring Septimius emperor in absentia. He would arrive a few days later to restore order to the city where he was welcomed as a savior. However, any love the Senate had for him quickly dissipated as he too, like Commodus before him (the last emperor of durable reign) was to systematically undermine and terrorize its members. Fortunately for them, Septimius would die a few years later during a campaign against the Scots in Britain.

AE 21 193--211 A.D. Serdica Obv. AVK.A.CCV(?)TOC: Laureate head right Rev. (Theta)V(Lambda)II I-CEP(Delta)IK: Thanatos standing right, legs crossed, and leaning on a transverse torch being quenched in a well (best interpretation) No data	Bythynia, Nicaea 193--211 A.D. AE 20 Obv. Laureate bust right Rev. Three standards, NIKAIE, (Omega)N below No data