Caracalla Bronze Dupondius (RIC IV Caracalla 550b)

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

The monetary system of the early third century AD continued the denominations established by Augustus, with base-metal fractional coinage operating below the precious metal issues of the denarius and newly introduced antoninianus. The dupondius represented a value of two asses, or half of a sestertius, serving as an essential medium for daily retail commerce, urban market exchange, and low-level state expenditure. In Severan monetary practice, the physical differentiation between the sestertius, dupondius, and as relied upon a mixture of weight, module, alloy, and royal iconography. While the sestertius was larger and heavier, the dupondius and as frequently shared comparable diameters, necessitating a clear visual marker. Since the monetary reforms of Nero, the radiate crown served as the universal iconographic badge of the dupondius, associating the issuer with Sol and distinguishing the coin from the laureate portraiture of the as. By AD 215, imperial base-metal issues were subjected to rising inflationary pressures caused by debasement in the silver coinage and expanding military costs. Nevertheless, the mint of Rome maintained the production of dupondii to support liquid urban trade, even though surviving numbers suggest they were struck in smaller quantities than both contemporary sestertii and denarii.

Production Technology and Mint Organization

RIC IV Caracalla 550b was produced exclusively by the imperial mint at Rome, which operated under strict administrative control. Roman base-metal coinage was manufactured by hot-striking prepared flans between two hand-engraved iron or bronze dies. The lower die, set into an anvil, held the obverse design, while the upper punch die bore the reverse motif. Metallurgically, early imperial dupondii had been struck in orichalcum, a copper-zinc brass alloy. By the Severan period, however, secondary recycling of scrap metal and altered alloy formulations had diminished the zinc content, resulting in bronze and mixed copper alloys with varied trace elements of tin and lead. Weight standards for the dupondius in this era were variable, with specimens typically clustering around 11 to 14 grams and measuring roughly 24 to 26 millimeters in diameter. Die cutting at Rome in AD 215 was executed by highly skilled craftsmen who maintained standard proportions, anatomical details, and sharp lettering across substantial production runs. The regular die axis orientation, frequently aligned around twelve or six o'clock, demonstrates the disciplined workshop organization characterizing the principal mint.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of type 550b presents a right-facing, radiate bust of Caracalla depicted with military cuirass. This specific portrait variant, catalogued by Mattingly and Sydenham under 550b, is characterized strictly by the cuirassed bust, distinguishing it from 550a, which features Caracalla with a bare neck and radiate head or alternate drapery arrangements. The radiate crown sits atop short, tight curls and a neatly trimmed beard typical of Caracalla's mature official portraiture after AD 212. In contrast to the youthful, idealized depictions seen during his joint rule with Septimius Severus, this portrait type conveys intense military authority and sternness, often interpreted as an active projection of soldierly vigilance. The cuirass highlights Caracalla's identification as supreme military commander on active campaign. The portrait fill encompasses the field, balanced by the peripheral Latin inscription, embodying the standard stylistic conventions of the Severan court style.

Reverse Design and Religious Program

The reverse of RIC IV Caracalla 550b is dominated by Asclepius, the Greco-Roman god of medicine and healing. The deity is depicted standing facing front with his head turned toward the left, nude to the waist with his mantle wrapped around his lower limbs. His right hand rests upon his iconic serpent-wreathed staff, a symbol of rejuvenation and therapeutic power. To the lower left of Asclepius stands Telesphorus, the dwarf son or companion of the god, clothed in a traditional hooded cloak (bardocullus), symbolizing convalescence and recovery from illness. At the lower right, on the ground plane, rests a globe, an imperial attribute signifying cosmic dominion and divine protection over the Roman world. In the lower lateral fields, the letters S and C denote the formal sanction of the Senate. This complex iconography reflects the emperor's acute preoccupation with physical and spiritual affliction during his eastern campaigns in AD 214 and 215, when he sought divine intervention at the famous sanctuary of Asclepius in Pergamum.

Epigraphy and Imperial Titles

The inscriptions on RIC IV Caracalla 550b provide a precise epigraphic record of imperial titles. The obverse legend reads ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM, expanding to Antoninus Pius Augustus Germanicus. The name Antoninus preserves the dynastic continuity with the Antonine house claimed by Septimius Severus, while Pius and Augustus underline customary religious devotion and supreme imperial authority. The honorific Germanicus celebrates Caracalla's campaigns along the Rhine and Danube frontier against the Alamanni in AD 213, a title he formally accepted late in that year. The reverse legend, P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P, provides the chronological framework for the issue. It records Caracalla as Pontifex Maximus (chief priest), holder of the tribunician power for the eighteenth time (TR P XVIII), consul for the fourth time (COS IIII), and Pater Patriae (father of the fatherland). The abbreviation S C across the field represents Senatus Consulto, acknowledging senatorial authority over traditional base-metal issues.

Typology and Chronological Placement

The combination of TR P XVIII and COS IIII dates the striking of RIC IV Caracalla 550b securely to the calendar year AD 215. Caracalla entered his eighteenth tribunician year on 10 December AD 214 or 1 January AD 215, depending on the mint's administrative calendar, with the title expiring at the close of AD 215. The reverse design belongs to an extensive thematic series struck across aurei, denarii, sestertii, and dupondii commemorating Apollo, Salus, and Asclepius. Within this health series, several typological variations exist: some reverse dies omit the globe, show Telesphorus in different postures, or present alternate stances of the god. In the base-metal classification of RIC IV, type 550 is divided according to the obverse bust: type 550a features a radiate head without cuirass, whereas type 550b specifically mandates the radiate and cuirassed bust. This typological rigor illustrates the organized division of labor among die engravers at the Rome mint, who maintained synchronized reverse motifs across simultaneous denominations.

Circulation, Hoarding, and Archaeological Context

Dupondii struck under Caracalla circulated throughout the Italian peninsula and the western provinces of the Roman Empire, including Britain, Gaul, and the Rhine-Danube frontier regions where Roman military concentrations demanded substantial cash supplies. In the eastern provinces, local civic bronzes dominated low-denomination daily exchange, meaning that imperial aes like RIC IV Caracalla 550b appeared there primarily in military contexts or through state payments. Because copper-alloy coins were subject to prolonged commercial wear, surviving specimens frequently show considerable smoothing and corrosion. Hoard evidence indicates that bronze coins of the Severan era remained in circulation well into the mid-third century AD, circulating alongside issues of the Antonines and subsequent third-century emperors until the monetary crises of the late 260s AD displaced traditional bronze fractional coinage in favor of heavily debased radiates.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 486-488
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Caracalla 550b. ric.4.crl.550b
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume IV, Part I: Pertinax to Geta. p. 301, no. 550b
4. Under Divine Auspices: Divine Ideology and the Visualisation of Imperial Power in the Severan Period. pp. 164-170