Obverse: CAESAR AVGVSTVS, Head of Augustus, oak-wreathed, left Reverse: DIVVS IVLIVS, Comet with eight rays and tail Date: c. 19-17 B.C. ID: RIC I Augustus 37B Size: 21mm diameter, 3.52g weight Composition: Silver
Caesar's comet was a bright comet that appeared four months after the assassination of Julius Caesar and during his birth month, July of 44 B.C. Octavian (later Augustus), Caesar's great-nephew and heir, proclaimed the comet to be the soul of Caesar rising to the heavens and becoming a god. This coin was produced 25 years later by Augustus, now first emperor of Rome, and celebrates the "Divine Julius."
