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This bronze coin dates back to the reign of Tiberius and was manufactured between 22AD to 30AD. On the observed side, you will notice that there is a man’s head; the person on the coin is identified as Augustus, with the letters DIVVS AGVSTVS PATER surrounding the head. On the reverse side of the coin, you would see an altar on the back with the letter S on the left and C on the right, and the word provident is shown in capitals underneath. This coin was for everyday use, such as buying food and clothes, and what a coin would be used for nowadays. The difference between this coin and other coins is that there is a lot more symbolization on this coin.

The most important part of this coin would have been the altar on the back and what that altar symbolizes and means to the Roman people. The Are Providentiae is the altar on the back of the coin. This altar would have been constructed sometime between 14AD and 17AD. This altar would also have been located in the Roman forum, but we are unsure of the exact location. The purpose of this structure was to commemorate Augustus’s wisdom in choosing the full line of successors to his throne as emperor. This means that Augustus had complete plans for the future of Rome and who their emperors after him would be.

An example would be when, in 38 AD, a sacrifice to the altar was held on the day Augustus adopted Tiberius, and very well, it could have been the same day that Tiberius adopted Germanicus(Duncan Fishwick 2010). This would also explain why the word provident was under the altar, as that means making preparations for the future. Another reason they used Provident and named the altar Are Provendentia was because of the Goddess Providentia. The Goddess was the God of foresight and the God of the imperial cult, meaning the Goddess looked after the imperial family and protected them.

What would have been the reason for putting this altar on the coin with the letters and, of course, Augustus’ head? Well, if you look at society today and even earlier, we put the heads of famous people on coins, such as Abraham Lincoln on the one-cent coin. The reason is to commemorate them and let them be known for history. You do not want leaders like Abraham Lincoln or Augustus to get lost in history because you do not want the values that those people had to get forgotten. This is the same thing in Ancient Rome; Augustus is seen as almost a godly figure to ordinary people since he saved Rome and won the civil war after Caesar’s assassination. Tiberius wanted to put Augustus on the coin to show the values of Augustus and commemorate all that he had done. This plays into the altar as it is supposed to show how Augustus had the foresight of who should be after him and how Augustus chose Tiberius to lead the people of Rome (Duncan Fishwick 2010). So not only was the coin meant to commemorate what Augustus had done, but also to make sure people knew Tiberius was the one chosen after him and he was the powerful one now.

In conclusion, the main use of this coin was, like any other coin, to pay for things such as food and necessities. It was also used to commemorate Augustus, remind the people of the best leader and emperor Rome had seen, and show how smart he really was. Last, it was used to show how he shaped the imperial family and the future emperors and to show that emperors such as Tiberius were hand-picked by Augustus.