Imperial Cult
In the propaganda of Claudius, the cult of Ceres Augusta made explicit the divine power that lay in the Imperial provision of the annona, the grain supply to the city. Annona Augusti appears on coins late in the reign of Nero, when the Cult of Virtues came into prominence in the wake of the Pisonian conspiracy. She embodied two of the material benefits of Imperial rule, along with Securitas Augusti, "Augustan Security," and often appeared as part of a pair with Ceres. On Neronian coinage, Ceres, Annona, and Abundantia ("Abundance") were closely associated.
Annona also appears on coins issued under Vespasian, where along with other Virtues she represents the restoration of confidence in the principate, and on the coinage of Titus, Domitian, Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Septimius Severus. She was a particular favorite in Trajan's propaganda, which sought to portray his reign as a renewal and a prosperous new era for mankind; hence Annona often appears with a symbolic child. In the context of Trajanic politics, Annona represented Rome's grain independence from its traditional supplier Egypt.
Read more about this topic: Annona (goddess)
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