Denarius of Lucius Aemilius Paullus

An adage in coin collecting is “Buy the book before the coin.” The thought is that while much is learned from viewing a coin, having authoritative references provides a deeper insight into rarity, value, and historical context. This coin is one of those cases. I’ve known for some time that its basic imagery shows the defeat of King Perseus of Macdeon at the hands of L. Aemilius Paullus Macedeonicus. I also have the standard reference, Crawford, but failed to read it. My naïve assumption was that the moneyer was a son or grandson of Macedonicus and was following the trend of many late Republican moneyers and honoring his forefathers. But the truth is more profound and interesting.

Macedonicus had no sons. He allowed his two oldest to be adopted into other notable families and relied on his two younger sons to carry on the family name. However, they died young, and thus, no Aemilii Paulii remained. So, how does our moneyer, an Aemilii Lepedii, come by this unusual name? Simply put, his father “gave” him the name Paullus in part to honor the distant ancestor but also as “stolen valor” to more closely align with a more reputable lineage and restore the “family name.” The father died in exile after demanding a consecutive consulship, and when rebuffed, marched on Rome and was defeated.

This naming trick did not seem to work as infamy followed the family: Lucius would be a staunch Optimate with Cicero but then go quietly neutral once Caesar bribed him with 1500 talents. Much went into the Basilica Aemilia, but some certainly into his pocket. His brother, the Triumvir Marcus Lepidius, faired a little better and would even proscribe Lucius but allowed him to escape. His fortunes would peak during the Second Triumvirate, but he is generally depicted as weak and out of touch. Reasonable when one’s troops defect to Antony and Octavian separately in two different decades.