Commodus Bronze Sestertius RIC III Commodus 407

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

The sestertius occupied a central position within the imperial monetary system established by Augustus and maintained through the Antonine era. Cast and struck in orichalcum, a golden-toned copper alloy rich in zinc, the denomination represented four bronze asses or two brass dupondii, and four sestertii traded against one silver denarius. Because of its substantial diameter and weight, the sestertius served as the principal currency for major everyday cash payments across Italy and provincial urban markets, spanning retail transactions, legal fines, and civic contracts. Beyond its strictly fiscal function, the sestertius represented the most effective medium for state messaging directed toward the domestic population of Rome. The broader flan provided the engravers at the Rome mint with an expansive field for intricate sculptural detail and extended official titulature, far surpassing the communicative limits of smaller silver or bronze issues. During the early sole reign of Commodus, securing urban stability remained an urgent administrative objective. Rome relied critically on grain imports shipped from Egypt and North Africa, and interruptions risked public disorder. By dedicating this major brass issue to Annona Augusta, the imperial court sought to reassure the senate, army, and urban populace that the grain supply remained safeguarded through the providence of the newly styled Augustus Pius.

Production Technology and Mint Operation

RIC III Commodus 407 was struck exclusively at the imperial capital by the mint of Rome, which exercised a near-monopoly on high-volume copper-alloy currency across the western Mediterranean. Production relied on cast orichalcum flans prepared in circular open-face or two-piece molds. The alloy retained the distinctive bright brass appearance traditional for sestertii, though zinc concentrations in late second-century issues experienced gradual dilution compared to early imperial standards. Striking occurred while flans were heated or at room temperature using hinged or hand-held iron dies, with the lower die securely embedded in an anvil and the upper reverse die struck with a heavy hammer. Dies were aligned predominantly in a vertical axial orientation, typical for Antonine issues, yielding coin axes close to twelve o'clock or six o'clock, though minor operational shifts occurred. Weight standards for sestertii in this period targeted approximately twenty-two to twenty-six grams with diameters around twenty-nine to thirty-one millimeters, but production relied on an al marco technique where a fixed count of flans was struck from a given pound of metal rather than individual flans weighed to precise tolerances. The reverse carries the traditional abbreviation S C (Senatus Consulto), reflecting the enduring constitutional fiction that token copper-alloy coinages were issued under senatorial decree, even as physical minting remained under direct equestrian imperial procurators.

Obverse Portraiture and Iconography

The obverse of RIC III Commodus 407 presents the head of Commodus facing right, crowned with a laurel wreath tied at the nape with dangling ribbons. The portrait reflects the artistic conventions developed for the emperor during his early sole reign, portraying him as a mature young ruler in his early twenties. His hair is arranged in deeply carved, buoyant curls cascading from the crown to the temples and neck, accented by drill work characteristic of late Antonine glyptic art. His beard is closely trimmed around the cheeks, chin, and jawline, demonstrating continuity with the philosophical styling popularized by his father, Marcus Aurelius, while asserting his own distinct facial physiognomy, including wide-set eyes, an aquiline nose, and an assertive jaw. The laurel wreath symbolizes victorious authority and imperatorial majesty. Engravers at the Rome mint cut these portrait dies with considerable plasticity and relief, creating an imposing presence that commanded immediate visual authority across the commercial spaces where the coins changed hands.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse iconography of RIC III Commodus 407 depicts Annona, the divine personification of the grain harvest and state provisioning, standing upright and oriented toward the left. She is costumed in traditional Roman female attire, wearing an ample stola beneath a draped palla that gathers along her left arm and falls gracefully in structured folds past her ankles. In her right hand, lowered toward her side, Annona grasps three or four ripe ears of wheat or corn, extending them directly above a modius resting on the ground to her left. The modius, a standard dry-measure vessel of approximately sixteen sextarii used in the imperial distribution of grain, signifies the systematic logistics underpinning the frumentatio, the monthly corn dole provided to qualified citizens of Rome. Held upright in the crook of her left arm is a large cornucopiae, overflowing with seasonal fruits and trailing ribbons, visual shorthand for agricultural plenty and universal abundance. Flanking the lower fields on either side of the figure are the large letters S and C. Together, the composition presents a cohesive message of administrative diligence and divine benevolence, attributing the continuous flow of food supplies directly to the vigilance of the ruling princeps.

Epigraphy and Titulature Analysis

The obverse inscription reads M COMMODVS ANTONINVS AVG PIVS, running clockwise along the perimeter of the coin. Each component reflects formal adjustments to the emperor's public identity following early crises in his reign. The praenomen Marcus (M) and the nomen Antoninus emphasize his dynastic descent from the Antonine line, while Augustus (AVG) records his supreme imperial rank. The cognomen Pius was formally integrated into the imperial nomenclature during AD 183 following the suppression of the Lucilla conspiracy and senatorial reorganizations, aligning Commodus with the celebrated legacy of Antoninus Pius. On the reverse, the legend reads ANN AVG P M TR P VIIII IMP VI COS IIII P P, framing the standing deity. The opening abbreviation ANN AVG denotes Annona Augusta, honoring the grain supply under the sacred protection of the emperor. The remaining sequence lists Commodus's constitutional offices: Pontifex Maximus (P M), the chief priesthood of the state; Tribunicia Potestate VIIII (TR P VIIII), marking his ninth annual grant of tribunician power; Imperator VI (IMP VI), his sixth military acclamation, awarded for campaigns on the northern frontiers; Consul IIII (COS IIII), recording his fourth ordinary consulship entered on January 1, AD 183; and Pater Patriae (P P), designating him father of the country. The senatorial formula S C occupies the lower field.

Typology and Chronological Placement

RIC III Commodus 407 occupies a precisely determined window within the numismatic chronology of the Antonine dynasty, established by the combination of TR P VIIII and IMP VI. In the Roman epigraphic calendar, Commodus's tribunician power was renewed annually in December; his ninth renewal began around December 10, AD 183, and expired on December 9, AD 184. Because the coin retains the sixth imperatorial acclamation and fourth consulship throughout this window, its striking is firmly assigned to AD 183-184. Within the broader typology of the Rome mint, RIC 407 forms part of a multi-denomination programmatic issue honoring Annona Augusta. Closely parallel designs carrying the same titular formula were struck concurrently in silver as denarii and in bronze as dupondii and asses. In RIC III, neighboring catalogue entries document minor compositional variations, including alternative stances for Annona, the introduction of a ship's prow beside the modius, or differences in bust truncation. RIC 407 is defined specifically by the laureate head right without drapery, Annona standing left holding ears over a modius and a cornucopiae, without the naval prow, and the explicit formula TR P VIIII.

Circulation Patterns and Archaeological Record

Upon release from the Rome mint, sestertii such as RIC III Commodus 407 entered an expansive circulation network extending across the Roman West. Bronze currency flowed outward from the capital through administrative disbursements, provincial building projects, and long-distance trade corridors. Archaeological findspots in Italy, the Gallic provinces, Roman Britain, and along the Rhine-Danube limes demonstrate that sestertii of Commodus circulated alongside worn currency of Trajan, Hadrian, Antoninus Pius, and Marcus Aurelius. Unlike precious metal denarii, which were periodically hoarded or culled when metallic fineness decreased, bronze sestertii remained in active circulation for decades until heavy abrasive wear rendered legends almost illegible. Many specimens of late Antonine sestertii recovered from site finds and hoards display substantial surface wear, countermarks, and smoothed edges, reflecting sustained exchange throughout the Severan period and well into the monetary disruptions of the mid-third century AD, when the introduction of the double sestertius and widespread currency inflation finally curtailed their everyday use.

References

1. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Commodus 407. ric.3.com.407
2. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 411, no. 407
3. Roman Imperial Coins in the Hunter Coin Cabinet, University of Glasgow: Vol. III. Antoninus Pius to Commodus. Commodus, bronze coinage
4. Die Münzprägung des Kaisers Commodus (MIR 18). types for AD 183-184