Augustus Silver Denarius, RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B

Monetary Context and Historical Setting

During the late twenties and early teens BC, the monetary landscape of the nascent Roman Empire underwent profound organizational restructuring. Following the conclusion of the civil wars at the Battle of Actium in 31 BC and the formal establishment of the Augustan Principate in 27 BC, the Roman state faced the enormous fiscal burden of demobilizing large armies, establishing overseas colonies, and stabilizing provincial economies. In Hispania, the prolonged military campaigns known as the Cantabrian Wars, which continued until around 19 BC under the generalship of Marcus Vipsanius Agrippa, demanded substantial supplies of reliable precious metal currency to pay active legionaries and distribute veteran bonuses. At this critical juncture, precious metal minting had not yet been centralized permanently at Rome or Lugdunum. Instead, Augustus utilized branch mints and regional military coin workshops across the western Mediterranean. The issuance of denarii such as RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B at Caesaraugusta falls directly into this post-war administrative framework. Denarii of this standard weighed around 3.8 grams of fine silver, maintaining the late Republican weight standard and tariffing at sixteen bronze asses. The injection of newly minted silver coins into the Iberian peninsula not only fulfilled military commitments but also accelerated the monetary integration of Hispania into the imperial fiscal sphere, supplanting local Iberian and Celtiberian coinages with standardized Roman denarii.

Production, Technology, and Mint Attribution

The attribution of RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B to Caesaraugusta, situated on the Ebro River in northeastern Hispania, is founded on modern numismatic scholarship analyzing style, die linkages, epigraphy, and hoard provenance. In the original 1923 edition of the Roman Imperial Coinage, Harold Mattingly tentatively assigned several western imperial series to uncertain Spanish mints, occasionally suggesting Emerita or Colonia Patricia. However, the systematic revisions conducted by C. H. V. Sutherland in the 1984 second edition of RIC I, supported by French scholars such as Jean-Baptiste Giard in the catalogue of the Bibliothèque nationale de France, established Caesaraugusta as a major center of production between roughly 19 BC and 18 BC. The mint operated with high metallurgical and technical discipline. Silver flans were cast in open or two-piece molds to a target weight approaching the traditional Augustan norm, then struck by hand between engraved intaglio dies. The die cutters at Caesaraugusta demonstrated exceptional stylistic skill, producing clean, classicizing portraits characterized by fine hair modeling, dignified facial features, and sharp epigraphy. The physical execution of this issue exhibits carefully aligned flans, relatively uniform die axes, and consistent striking pressure, reflecting an official workshop staffed by experienced engravers rather than an ad hoc frontier operation.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse of RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B presents a left-facing bare head of Augustus wearing the corona civica, an oak-leaf wreath tied with ribbons that fall along the back of the neck. This issue lacks an obverse inscription, a stylistic choice common among Augustan issues from the Iberian workshops that maximizes the uncluttered aesthetic impact of the imperial portrait. In Roman culture, the corona civica, or civic crown woven from leaves of the oak tree, was one of the most prestigious military decorations of the Republic, traditionally awarded to a soldier who had preserved the life of a fellow citizen in battle. In January of 27 BC, the Senate officially conferred this wreath upon Augustus to commemorate his restoration of peace and his salvation of the Roman commonwealth from civil devastation. Placing the civic crown upon the head of the Princeps visually communicated his role as protector and restorer of the Republic without resorting to overtly monarchical symbols. The left-facing orientation of the portrait provides a notable typological distinction from the more frequent right-facing portraits of the Augustan series, such as the companion issue RIC 33A. The rendering of the head balances Hellenistic royal majesty with Roman veristic dignity, portraying a youthful yet serene ruler whose authority is underscored by sacred and civic sanction.

Reverse Composition and Symbolic Meaning

The reverse composition of the denarius exhibits an elegant, understated balance centered on sacred and civic honors. The design depicts two upright laurel branches standing vertically, between and around which the imperial name is inscribed in two horizontal registers. Like the oak wreath on the obverse, the laurel branches represent explicit honors awarded to Augustus by senatorial decree in 27 BC. The Senate had ordered two laurel trees to be planted on either side of the entrance to his house on the Palatine Hill, flanking the oak wreath fixed above his doorway. The Palatine residence was situated adjacent to the Temple of Apollo, the patron deity to whom Augustus attributed his victory at Actium. The laurel was intrinsically sacred to Apollo and served as a traditional Roman emblem of triumph, renewal, and religious purification. By depicting two solitary laurel branches flanking his name, the reverse imagery creates an unmistakable visual parallel to the Palatine doorway. This architectural and religious metaphor reminded the viewer of the Princeps as a victorious commander and consecrated guardian of Rome whose very dwelling enjoyed the ongoing protection of the gods.

Epigraphy and Legend Structure

The legend on RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B is confined entirely to the reverse face, arranged in two distinct horizontal lines above and below the laurel branches as CAESAR in the upper line and AVGVSTVS in the lower line. The lettering is rendered in standard Roman lapidary capitals, displaying balanced proportions, crisp terminations, and well-spaced letterforms characteristic of Augustan epigraphic design. The simplicity of the legend represents a deliberate ideological statement. In contrast to late Republican and early triumviral denarii, which frequently carried dense titulature, military commands, and moneyers' family names, this issue relies on the two most potent titles in the Augustan political lexicon. CAESAR recalled the divine lineage of the dictator Julius Caesar, confirming Augustus as Divi Filius and heir to military loyalty. AVGVSTVS, the solemn title conferred by the Senate in 27 BC, expressed divine favor, reverence, and religious authority, deriving from the Latin augere, meaning to increase or sanctify. By omitting magistrates' names and consular reckonings, the coin emphasizes the sole supremacy of the Princeps while maintaining an austere republican elegance in letter spacing and design.

Typological Variants and Chronological Framework

RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B occupies a precise position within Sutherland's classification of the Caesaraugusta emissions of 19 BC to 18 BC. Sutherland established a parallel sequence of types distinguished by portrait direction and reverse motifs. The primary companion piece to RIC 33B is RIC 33A, which shares the identical reverse layout of the two laurel branches and CAESAR AVGVSTVS inscription, as well as the oak-wreathed obverse portrait, but portrays Augustus facing right rather than left. Related types from the same workshop feature the shield of virtue, the clipeus virtutis, flanked by laurel branches (RIC 34A and 34B), or pair the left-facing and right-facing portraits with equestrian statues and triumphal emblems. The exact sequence of striking within the 19 BC to 18 BC window is confirmed by hoard evidence and die transitions between portrait variants and laurel reverses. Because Augustus was in the western provinces negotiating administrative settlements around 19 BC before returning to Rome, these coinages form a tightly cohesive chronological grouping. Minor variations exist in die cutting, such as the curvature of the laurel leaves, the spacing of the leaves along the stems, and the precise alignment of the legend letters, representing the work of individual die sinkers within the mint.

Circulation and Monetary Impact

Following their production at Caesaraugusta, denarii of RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B circulated widely throughout the western Roman provinces and beyond. While their immediate purpose was local payment for legionary forces stationed in Hispania and expenditures related to new colonial foundations, Roman denarii were fully convertible legal tender across the empire. Hoard records across the Iberian peninsula, Gaul, the Rhine frontier, and northern Italy attest to the active dispersion of these Spanish issues. The high purity of the Augustan silver denarius ensured its long-term commercial survival; specimens remained in circulation for several decades, occasionally appearing in hoards deposited as late as the Flavian era. Over prolonged use, many specimens experienced substantial surface wear, clipping, and countermarking by military authorities along the frontier zones. The widespread distribution of this type successfully disseminated the newly established imperial visual program, familiarizing distant provincial populations with the peaceful and victorious authority of Augustus through the combined imagery of the civic crown and the sacred Palatine laurels.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume I: Augustus to Vitellius. pp. 57-61
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC I (second edition) Augustus 33B. ric.1(2).aug.33B
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume I: From 31 BC to AD 69 (Revised Edition). pp. 43-45, no. 33B
4. The Emperor and the Coinage: Julio-Claudian Studies. pp. 23-38
5. The Power of Images in the Age of Augustus. pp. 92-95