Last night as I was doing some reading for my course on ancient numismatics in the peaceful ambiance of Sydney’s Darling Harbour, I came across a bit of information that immediately aroused my curiosity—namely, that the deification of Roman emperors was typologically communicated on Imperial coinage by means of a star over the emperor’s head. “What’s so interesting about that?” you may ask. Try this:

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star when it rose and have come to worship him.”

When King Herod heard this he was disturbed, and all Jerusalem with him. When he had called together all the people’s chief priests and teachers of the law, he asked them where the Messiah was to be born. “In Bethlehem in Judea,” they replied, “for this is what the prophet has written:

“‘But you, Bethlehem, in the land of Judah,
are by no means least among the rulers of Judah;
for out of you will come a ruler
who will shepherd my people Israel.’”

Then Herod called the Magi secretly and found out from them the exact time the star had appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem and said, “Go and make a careful search for the child. As soon as you find him, report to me, so that I too may go and worship him.”

After they head the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen when it rose went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was. When they saw the star, they were overjoyed. (Mt 2:1-10)

So when I got home, naturally I checked a couple numismatic databases to get a look for myself, and sure enough, I found quite a few coins with a DIVVS (”divine”) inscription and a star over, or near, the emperor’s head.

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Obverse: head of Augustus, star/comet above
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Reverse inscription: AVGVST DIVI F LVDOS SAE (”Augustus, Son of the Divine [Caesar], Secular Games”)

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Obverse: Head of Octavian, star, inscription: DIVI F (”Son of the Divine [Caesar]“)
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Reverse inscription: DIVOS IVLIVS (”Divine Julius”)

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Obverse: Head of Tiberias, inscription: TI CAESAR DIVI AVG F AVGVSTVS (”Tiberius Caesar Augustus, Son of the Divine Augustus”)
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Reverse: Head of Augustus, star above, inscription: DIVOS AVGVST DIVI F (”Divine Augustus, Son of the Divine [Caesar]“)

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The star seems to have been associated initially with Julius and then adopted by subsequent emperors who claimed to be divine by association. At any rate, if this is the image to which the author of Matthew’s Gospel is referring, then his point is a profound protest against Imperial rule: There is a new King, Jesus, the only Divine Son of the True God.

What do you think?