Elagabalus Silver Antoninianus, RIC IV Elagabalus 18e

Monetary Context and Denominational Status

The denomination modern numismatists designate as the antoninianus or radiate was introduced by Caracalla in AD 215 to alleviate severe fiscal pressures caused by military pay increases and imperial expenditure. Officially tariffed at two denarii, the coin was struck at a weight of approximately one and a half denarii (around 5.1 grams initially) and at a lower fineness, rendering it an overvalued fiduciary currency that yielded a substantial seigniorage profit to the imperial fiscus. Following Caracalla's death and a temporary cessation under Macrinus, Elagabalus resumed the production of antoniniani upon his accession in AD 218. However, this production was comparatively short-lived. By AD 219 and AD 220, the Rome mint significantly curtailed the striking of radiate silver, eventually abandoning the denomination altogether before the end of the reign. RIC IV Elagabalus 18e belongs precisely to this ephemeral window of resumed antoninianus production during the emperor's second tribunician year.

Production Standards and Mint Organization

RIC IV Elagabalus 18e was struck exclusively at the principal imperial mint situated in Rome. During the early reign of Elagabalus, the Rome mint operated across multiple officinae that shared master dies and iconographic templates while managing separate administrative outputs. Metallurgical studies of early third-century silver indicate that antoniniani of this period typically ranged between 40 and 46 percent silver fineness, with the remainder composed of copper and minor trace elements. Theoretical weight standards clustered near 5.0 grams, though surviving specimens demonstrate substantial standard deviations, frequently weighing between 4.0 and 5.3 grams due to al marco striking practices where batches of flans were weighed collectively rather than individually adjusted.

Obverse Design and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 18e presents a youthful bust of the emperor turned to the right. The emperor wears a radiate crown, the signature numismatic marker designating a double denomination on Roman silver and aes issues from the early empire onward. The bust is carefully draped over the shoulders. Unlike later portraits from the reign that portray the emperor with a small ritual horn or distinctive priestly regalia associated with the cult of Elagabal, this early portrait conforms closely to conventional Severan dynastic portraiture, intentionally echoing the physical features and coin types of Caracalla to reinforce his claim of direct paternal descent.

Reverse Iconography and Attributes

The reverse design depicts the goddess Fortuna draped in a stola and seated facing left upon a low stool or throne. In her right hand she grasps the tiller of a rudder, which is set firmly upon a terrestrial globe, while her left arm cradles an overflowing cornucopiae. Positioned beneath the seat is a six- or eight-spoke wheel. Each attribute carries specific symbolic meaning within Roman state religion and imperial propaganda: the globe signifies universal dominion, the rudder represents divine steering and guidance of the empire, the cornucopiae promises material abundance under imperial favor, and the wheel embodies the cyclic nature of fate and the safe return (Fortuna Redux) of the ruler to the capital city.

Inscriptions and Epigraphy

The obverse legend is inscribed continuously along the perimeter: IMP ANTONINVS AVG, resolving to Imperator Antoninus Augustus. By suppressing the Syrian moniker Varius Avitus Bassianus and adopting the formal name Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, the young emperor embedded his official authority firmly in the Antonine-Severan lineage. The reverse legend provides an explicit sequence of imperial titles: P M TR P II COS II P P, expanding to Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate II, Consul II, Pater Patriae. The inscription documents his supreme pontificate, his second assumption of tribunician power, his second consulship, and his formal acceptance of the title Father of his Country.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the standard classification established in Roman Imperial Coinage, RIC IV Elagabalus 18 comprises several related bust varieties sharing the dated reverse legend of the emperor's second tribunician year. Subtype 18e is strictly defined by its radiate and draped bust seen from behind or profile right, without cuirass. Because Elagabalus assumed the tribunician power for the first time in mid-218 and entered his second tribunician power on 10 December 218 or on 1 January 219 (depending on the renewal convention observed by the mint), combined with his second consulship beginning 1 January 219, RIC 18e is securely dated to the calendar year AD 219. Struck concurrently with denarii sharing identical legends, this type belongs to the penultimate phase of antoninianus output before the denomination disappeared from Rome's mint until its reintroduction under Pupienus, Balbinus, and Gordian III in AD 238.

Circulation, Hoards, and Archaeological Context

Antoniniani of Elagabalus circulated alongside surviving Caracallan radiates and vast quantities of Severan denarii across both western and eastern provinces. Because the antoninianus carried an intrinsic silver tariff disadvantage compared to two single denarii, Gresham's law tendencies influenced its circulation patterns. When Severus Alexander completely discontinued radiate minting upon his accession in AD 222, early antoniniani remained in commercial circulation in limited quantities, often being preferentially hoarded or selectively melted down. Examples of RIC IV Elagabalus 18e appear sporadically in mid-third-century hoards deposited during the reigns of Decius, Trebonianus Gallus, and Valerian, demonstrating that they circulated until the massive hyper-debasements of the AD 250s and AD 260s drove remaining high-weight early radiates out of active currency.

References

1. Coinage in the Roman Economy, 300 B.C. to A.D. 700. pp. 125-132
2. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 535-538
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 18e. ric.4.el.18e
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. pp. 28-29, no. 18e
5. The Metrology of the Roman Silver Coinage, Part III: From Pertinax to Uranius Antoninus. pp. 60-64