How Did Augustus Use Coins In Julius Caesar

Whatever was shown on the coins however could differ from the actual events that it was portraying, as the images on the coins were specifically crafted to allow manipulation of the general publics' view of their ruler. Using this kind of clever regime there are many examples of how Augustus uses portraiture coins to help the citizens of Rome to make a connection between the divine and their ruler and this helps the Emperor to spread propaganda. After the 13 year civil war ended where Augustus emerged victorious, he used the Roman coin to celebrate his Pax Romana with a specific coin [see Figure 3.] inscribed with the phrase 'CAESAR AVGVSTVS DIVI F PATER PATRIAE', which translated into 'Augustus Caesar, Favoured of the Gods, Father of

Another example of Augustus' use of message through coins to further his good and illustrious public image with the people is in a coin depicting the Parthian Arch of Augustus[see Figure 4.]. The reverse side has a print of a triumphal arch that Augustus had erected in his victory over the Parthian 'Standards' dispute, where some Roman standard flags were stolen by the Parthians and through negotiation Augustus was able to retrieve them without bloodshed . This coin is a reminder to the Romans of Emperor Augustus' diplomatic prowess and how not all conflicts and situations concerning Rome should be resolved with war and unnecessary death. However after Caesars' death is where Augustus truly built up his public image as the gracious and divine son of Julius Caesar by deifying his adoptive father and releasing a set of denarius with both their portraits on the obverse and reverse respectively. One coin set distributed in 37-31 BC [See Figure 5.] depicts a deified Julius inscribed with the legend: 'DIVUS JULIUS' noting how Caesar has been lifted to Godly status, this was combined with the public funeral Octavian/Augustus held for his father. Note on the obverse side depicts Octavian with a growing beard which would be a Roman sign for mourning, this resulted in a personalised portrait of loss and a scheme to

As Julius Caesar prior to Augustus/Octavian had made a point of referencing the Goddess Venus on his own minted money in order to link the Julian family bloodline back to its 'divine' origins , Octavian was capable of taking this symbol imagery as his own and thus was able to create a far more impressive set of propagandic coinage as opposed to that of Marc Antony who had also been producing his own set of personalised coins for the civil war . This is seen in [see Figure 8.] the denarius found in the British Museum with the obverse of a bust of the Goddess Venus and the reverse with Octavian in full military dress and his cloak billowing out heroically behind him, advancing forth holding a spear in his left hand with his right outstretched. This particular coin was part of Octavians 'Pre-Actium' coinage and was issued in response to Marc Antony and his own propaganda . Yet on the obverse of the coin the bust of Venus shows the connection between Octavian and legitimises him as Caesar's heir and specifically as Venus is the Goddess with which the Julian family line is said to converge with, the actual image of Octavian in military gear is to spread the message of Octavian's militarism and his ability to rule and lead his