[ 4046] 

Domitian  81-96 A.D. 
Bronze As (30mm, 10.9 gm.). Rome, 14 Sep - 31 Dec, 88 AD. Very Rare
Reference: RIC 623; Sear'88 #910.
IMP CAES DOMIT AVG GERM P M TR P VIII CENS PER P P, laureate head right.
COS XIIII LVD SAEC FEC, Domitian standing left sacrificing from patera over altar, with hexstyle temple in background, two attendants playing harp & pan pipes to left, SC in ex.

In 88 AD, Domitian initiated the Saecular Games (LVDI SAECVLVM), a celebration to mark the commencement of a new age, or Saeculum. The games were first celebrated in either 348 or 249 BC and were supposed to be held every 100 to 105 years; however, after 146 BC the schedule was thrown off track by civil wars and disruptions, and the next Saeculum was not celebrated until Augustus did so in 17 BC. Claudius, using the earlier formula, celebrated a new set in 47 AD, but Domitian dated his Saeculum from the Augustan games 105 years previous. The reverse of this handsome coins shows Domitian opening the games with a sacrifice before the Temple of Jupiter Stator, attended by two flute-playing musicians.