Uranius

Uranius Antoninus coin, with Greek inscriptions and dated according to the Seleucid Empire. On the reverse, the Emesa temple to the sun god El Gabal, with the holy stone.

Uranius is the name of a Roman usurper cited by Zosimus, and active during the reigns of Elagabalus or Alexander Severus.

However, it is possible that Zosimus confused this usurper with Lucius Julius Aurelius Sulpicius Severus Uranius Antoninus, who, according to numismatical evidence, reigned much later: in Syria, in 254, coins were struck bearing his name. He was a Priest originally called Sampsiceramus.

It's not clear whether the coins that were struck in Syria belong to the same man (or men) spoken about in the texts. If the later date is correct Uranius might have helped defend the Roman Empire against Shapur I, the Sassanid king of Persia.

What happened to him after his claim on the throne is not known.

External links

Media related to Uranius at Wikimedia Commons