This bronze, uniface plaque, with a diameter of 220 mm, was designed by the artist Filippo Sgarlata in 1930. It features Mussolini in profile wearing a Roman uniform. The medal was probably made to celebrate the Lateran Pacts, as a similar medal with the profile of Pope Pius XI by the artist exists from the same year, although this has not yet been confirmed.

The Latin word triumphator is first attested in post-classical Latin where it is both used as an equivalent to victor, and as an epithet for Jupiter, the Greek hero Hercules, and emperors (especially in inscriptions). During the Fascist period, Mussolini was both associated with the Roman emperors and with Hercules. Mussolini’s association with Hercules is also attested in other works, such as the medal celebrating the Herculaneum excavations. Additionally, the word is derived from the interjection triumphe, commonly associated with Emperor Augustus through Horace’s Ode 4.2. In this way, the idea of Italy and the world proclaiming Mussolini as triumphator may evoke allusions to imperial, heroic, and even divinely sanctioned power.

Bibliography

Numismatica Italiana, “Uniface a Benito Mussolini 220mm”, W-ME61H/133-1.

Erlend Myklebust