Elagabalus Gold Aureus, RIC IV Elagabalus 57d

Monetary Context and Imperial Policy

During the reign of Elagabalus, the Roman monetary system maintained the bimetallic and trimetallic arrangements structured during the early Severan era, though economic stress was increasingly evident across billon and base-metal denominations. The gold aureus functioned as the anchor of state finance, used primarily for immense state payments, imperial donatives to the legions and the praetorian guard, and diplomatic subsidies. Unlike the denarius and the newly re-established antoninianus, which suffered substantial debasement in fineness, the gold aureus remained struck at a high level of metallurgical purity, generally exceeding ninety-five percent gold content. Following adjustments made under Caracalla, the weight standard of the aureus had been established at roughly forty-five coins to the Roman pound, yielding a theoretical weight standard of approximately 7.22 grams, though surviving specimens demonstrate typical practical variation between 6.8 and 7.4 grams. Gold issues like RIC IV Elagabalus 57d were not intended for standard daily commerce. Instead, their production served targeted ceremonial disbursements and political consolidation, signaling the continuity and divine legitimacy of the Severan house to the administrative and military elites of Rome.

Mint Organization and Production Techniques

The production of RIC IV Elagabalus 57d is securely attributed to the imperial mint situated in Rome. Following the victory of Elagabalus over Macrinus in Syria in June AD 218, the imperial administration rapidly coordinated with the urban mint to prepare issues introducing the new ruler to the capital long before his physical arrival. The mint of Rome operated with dedicated workshops or officinae, utilizing skilled die-engravers who adhered to rigid stylistic templates set by the imperial court. Dies for gold coinage received meticulous artistic attention, displaying delicate relief, precise drapery, and neatly formed epigraphy compared to concurrent silver or bronze production. Flans were cast, weighed with extreme precision to adhere to the gold standard, heated, and struck between hand-held upper dies and anvil-mounted lower dies. Die alignment for Severan aurei of this series commonly shows a regular or near-regular orientation, reflecting the disciplined workshop control maintained by the monetary magistrates and freedmen overseeing urban coinage operations.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 57d presents a formal portrait of the emperor facing right. In accordance with the precise sub-type designation 57d, the bust combines three distinct imperial attributes: the laurel wreath, the paludamentum or military cloak, and the cuirass. The youthful facial features reflect the adolescent sovereign, adopting the idealized family resemblance cultivated by Severan portraiture to emphasize direct lineage from Caracalla and Septimius Severus. The laurel wreath sits firmly on short, curly hair, with laurel ties trailing down toward the nape of the neck. The drapery of the cloak is gathered over the left shoulder and fastened, while the shoulder-strap and plates of the breastplate are delineated beneath the folds. This fully armed and crowned presentation projected strength, legitimacy, and supreme military command to the Roman world, balancing civil status with readiness for war.

Reverse Iconography of the Adventus

The reverse design represents the classical theme of Adventus Augusti, the ritualized ceremonial arrival of the princeps. Elagabalus is shown in active equestrian posture, riding a prancing horse that moves leftward. The emperor wears military dress, including a tunic and cloak. His right hand is raised upward with open palm in the adlocutio or benevolent greeting gesture, signaling peace and imperial favor to the awaiting senate and citizenry. In his left hand, resting diagonally across his body or held upright, he grasps a transverse spear, embodying active imperial protection and martial authority. The horse is portrayed with raised forelegs and arched neck, demonstrating controlled vitality under the sovereign's firm hand. The adventus ceremony carried profound religious and political significance in Roman tradition, marking the sanctified entrance of the ruler into the sacred boundary of the city and establishing civic harmony.

Epigraphy and Legend Structure

The legends on both faces of the coin are concise and carefully executed in clean Roman capitals. The obverse reads IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, an abbreviated formulation of Imperator Antoninus Pius Augustus. By adopting the formal name Antoninus, the emperor explicitly presented himself as the son and legal heir of Caracalla (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus), masking his Syrian birth name, Varius Avitus Bassianus. The epithet Pius reinforced claims of filial devotion and religious righteousness, while Augustus confirmed supreme constitutional authority. On the reverse, the legend ADVENTVS AVGVSTI serves as an explicit caption for the equestrian scene, translated as 'The Arrival of the Augustus.' Unbroken by dates, tribunician counts, or consulships, the inscription functions as a broad thematic proclamation of the arrival ceremony, conveying both a historical event and an ongoing condition of imperial blessing.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the standard reference corpus Roman Imperial Coinage, volume IV part II, type 57 embraces gold aurei featuring the Adventus reverse paired with various obverse bust treatments. Harold Mattingly and Edward Sydenham designated lettered sub-types to differentiate these portrait styles: type 57a denotes a bare head or simply laureate head, type 57b indicates a laureate and draped bust, type 57c features a laureate and cuirassed bust, while type 57d specifies the fully laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust right. Chronologically, Elagabalus began his march from Syria in late 218, wintered in Nicomedia, and made his grand entrance into Rome in July or August of AD 219. Numismatists generally assign the striking of RIC 57d either to late 218 in anticipation of his arrival or directly to the celebratory window of AD 219. Because the legend lacks tribunician dates, some scholarship allows for the possibility of continued or renewed strikes later in his reign, but the narrow thematic context makes an issue date around AD 219 the most compelling historical framework.

Circulation, Hoarding, and Preservation

Due to their high intrinsic value, gold aurei such as RIC IV Elagabalus 57d circulated through distinct socioeconomic channels. Rather than passing through petty market transactions, aurei were hoarded as concentrated stores of private wealth or retained within military and aristocratic treasuries. When they did circulate, wear accumulated slowly compared to silver denarii, although slight surface contact and edge friction are typical of specimens retrieved from ancient hoards. Third-century monetary crises and inflation prompted extensive melting and re-coining of earlier high-purity gold under later emperors, which greatly diminished the surviving population of Severan aurei. Consequently, RIC IV Elagabalus 57d survives today in only a limited number of museum cabinets and major institutional collections, often preserved in relatively high grade due to prompt burial in precious-metal savings deposits.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 531-534
2. Roman Coins from the Earliest Times to the Fall of the Western Empire. pp. 145-152
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 57d. ric.4.el.57d
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 31, no. 57d