Vetranio March - December 350 AD, bronze Centenionalis, Siscia

Vetranio (March - December 350 AD), bronze Centenionalis, Siscia. D N VETRANIO P F AVG, laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right. A behind head, star before, rev. CONCORDIA MILITVM / BSIS✱ emperor, diademed and in military dress, facing, head left, holding labarum and transverse spear. To the right stands Victory, crowning him with a wreath and holding a palm branch. 4.96g 6h, (RIC VIII 292, Siscia 287). Extremely fine with a weak reverse die.

Vetranio was a Roman general who briefly ruled as emperor in 350 AD during a period of political unrest in the Roman Empire. He was commander of the Roman forces in the Danube region and was proclaimed emperor by his troops, possibly with the support of Constantina, the sister of the emperor Constantius II. Vetranio's rise came during a rebellion by Magnentius, who had seized control of the western Roman Empire. Constantius II initially accepted Vetranio's position but later moved against him. In a famous confrontation at Naissus, Constantius reportedly persuaded Vetranio's army to abandon him by delivering a speech asserting his own legitimacy. Vetranio then peacefully surrendered his imperial title and was allowed to retire. He lived in retirement until his death in 356 AD. Although his reign lasted only a few months, Vetranio is significant because his unusual abdication avoided a major military conflict between his forces and those of Constantius II.

The obverse legend D N VETRANIO P F AVG translates to "Our Lord Vetranio, Pious and Fortunate Augustus."

The reverse legend CONCORDIA MILITVM translates to "Unity of the Army."