A rare coin minted by Marcus Junius Brutus after he helped assassinate Julius Caesar will go to auction next week. The gold coin — one of only 17 of its kind known to exist — dates to 43 or 42 B.C. and depicts Brutus on the front and a trophy celebrating a naval victory on the back.
On the Ides of March in 44 B.C., Brutus and co-conspirator Gaius Cassius Longinus led dozens of men to a meeting of the Roman Senate. Their plan was to murder Caesar, as they thought his growing power threatened the Roman Republic. Caesar was stabbed 23 times, and as he lay dying, he famously chastised his close friend Brutus for his role in the plot. (Although Caesar spoke to Brutus in Greek, this interaction was later dramatized by William Shakespeare with the Latin phrase "Et tu, Brute?" which translates to "Even you, Brutus?")
