The bull coinage of Julian the Apostate has long been a topic of debate in academic circles, the bronze coin depicts a Bull standing to the right accompanied by two stars with the legend “SECVRITAS REI PVB” (Security or Guardianship of the State). Many academics have attempted to explain the meaning of the coin.
Most interpretations of the coin focus, perhaps rightly on the Bull as the true message of the coin. This is, after all, a logical approach, the image of the emperor is often a trope on all coins either depicting the emperor as a statesman or a warrior depending on the context of the coin.
Previous interpretations of the bull produced a wide range of outcomes. From a representation, based on the writings of Homer and the description of Agamemnon within book two of the Iliad, of the emperor himself, to a depiction of the sun god Helios. Others state that it represents the cult of Mithras being pushed to the fore by Julian during his Rule. Another offers the bull as a symbol of pagan reforms to the Roman army brought by Julian.
Whilst these debates have raged, little to no attention has been paid to the image of Julian himself, perhaps then, this could be the answer we’re looking for in the long debated image of the bull on the coin.
Julian is pictured with a diadem, bearded, cuirassed and draped. The draping of the emperor is not unusual and is generally seen as portraying a civil role. It is, perhaps, the beard of Julian in this image that is most revealing in this case.
Whilst a bearded Julian is not uncommon in his coinage the style in the bull coinage is noticeably different. It appears that in other coins Julian is presenting his beard in a military manner similar to the emperors of the third century and the tetrarchs. However this is not the case in the bull coinage, it is distinctly long perhaps an attempt to emphasise the philosophical nature of his beard, which Julian relates to in his work Misopogon (Beard Haters).
Indeed, if we look at the wider artistic program of Julian, he is keen to emphasise the philosophical nature of his rule. A statue of Julian dated to his reign, looks to portray Julian as a priest and philosopher. The heavy beard on the coinage is reminiscent of this but we may also see this in the draped aspect of the image of Julian. The drapery around the Emperor in the coin could be seen as an attempt to imitate the drapery that the emperor is seen in on this statue.
It would appear then, that through the imagery of the Emperor himself on this coin we could reveal a further details on the message behind the coin. Indeed, we may see a precedent for the way in which Julian is attempting to portray himself here, in this case, the ancient king of Rome, Numa. Numa was seen by many as the founder of the pagan religion of Rome. If we take into consideration the image of Numa on a coin of republican date we can see that there are similarities between the two images. Both are portrayed with a distinctively long, pointed, beard and are crowned with a diadem. Numa features in Julian’s Against the Gallileans and Hymn to King Helios where he is praised philosophy for his righteousness towards the god Helios (Or. IV 249-51. Julian, Against the Gallileans 371-3).
Although we must bear in mind how remote the coinage depicting Numa was to the rule of Julian and question if Julian ever saw this coin.
If Julian is emphasising the philosophical and religious side of his reign in his own image on the coin then we should also consider the bull itself in a philosophical or religious context rather than the military or a self-representation as previously discussed by scholars.
For me the image of the Emperor on the coin depicts him as a philosopher emperor, and we need only look at the core of his attempted philosophical revolution based around Helios to touch on an interpretation of the Bull as a depiction of Helios.