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VICTORIA

The personnification of Victory is possibly the all - time favorite allegorical figure of those great fanciers of allegory, the Romans. Every Roman emperor had at least one victory type struck unless he was one of those wussy wimps that only managed to strike a CONCORDIA MILITVM or FIDES EXERCITVS before he was butchered in his tent by a few bored Praetorian Guardsmen in search of a little light afternoon amusement.

Victoria is most often shown with wings and holds a wreath, palm, trophy, or shield. She is often seen with a combination of two or more of these attributes and is often seen writing a VOTIS message on a shield.

The Victoriola
was a carved wooden statue of Victory often shown being presented by Jupiter or another deity to the emperor. It symbolized the gift of victory in battle from the gods.


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