Ceres

The earth-goddess Ceres originated from Campania and she was worshipped as an agricultural deity, in particular a goddess of corn. At Rome her cult was established since 493 BC and she had a temple on the Aventine hill. The festival of the Cerealia was celebrated in her honour on April 19.

Ceres was identified with the Greek goddess Demeter and eventually became entirely Hellenised. She appears frequently on Roman coins, her head usually adorned with corn-ears, holding corn-ears and a torch, sometimes two short torches; a cornucopia or corn-ears and a bundle of poppies.

Her worship was associated with the plebeian classes concerned with the grain trade. When the aediles M. Fannius and L. Critonius were in office one of their main tasks was to inspect public stores of corn. The denarius above alludes to this event: the obverse depicts Ceres wearing a corn-wreath; an earring; her hair rolled back, knotted behind, and falling down in her neck. The reverse shows the aediles togate, seated on a subsellium, corn-ears before them.

Ceres also featured on many reverse types of empresses during the first and second centuries AD: the sestertius of Faustina the Elder, struck by Antoninus Pius, shows Ceres standing and holding corn-ears and a torch (above right), while the denarius (right) struck under Septimius Severus AD 193-211, has Ceres seated, holding corn-ears and a long torch.

Sestertius of Faustina Maior, reverse Ceres standing left, holding corn-ears and torch, AVGVSTA S. C

AR denarius of Julia Domna, reverse Ceres seated, holding corn-ears and torch.