Elagabalus Silver Denarius RIC IV Elagabalus 45b

Monetary Context and Silver Standards

By the reign of Elagabalus (AD 218 to 222), the Roman denarius had undergone decades of progressive debasement instituted under Septimius Severus and Caracalla. While Caracalla introduced the radiate double denarius, or antoninianus, in AD 215, the production of that new denomination was largely suspended or drastically curtailed during the reign of Elagabalus in favor of regular denarii. The denarius thus remained the cornerstone of Roman silver currency, state expenditures, and military pay. Denarii of this specific issue, struck in AD 221, adhered to the standard Severan metallurgical metrics, typically yielding a gross weight fluctuating between 2.8 and 3.3 grams with a median around 3.1 grams. The alloy contained an average silver purity of approximately 40 to 45 percent, balanced by a significant copper core. This deliberate state-controlled fiduciary standard allowed the imperial administration to sustain heavy expenditures, including imperial donatives and religious ceremonies in Rome, while functioning at an overvalued nominal tariff within domestic circulation.

Mint Organization and Production in Rome

Numismatic consensus assigns the production of RIC IV Elagabalus 45b exclusively to the principal imperial mint at Rome. Unlike early issues of Elagabalus that were struck concurrently at eastern mints such as Antioch or Emesa before his arrival in the capital, the dated series bearing the title TR P IIII belongs firmly to the central administration in Rome. The Roman mint operated through multiple distinct officinae, or workshops, utilizing disciplined die-engraving styles and standardized flan preparation. Flans were cast in individual molds or sliced from cast rods and preheated prior to striking between hand-carved intaglio dies. Die axes for this emission generally follow the regular upright or inverted alignments characteristic of the Rome mint in the third century AD. The high output of denarii during AD 221 reflected ongoing fiscal requirements, as evidenced by multiple observed obverse and reverse die pairings across preserved hoards.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 45b features a right-facing bust of the young emperor, laureate and draped. This drapery, usually representing the military paludamentum secured at the shoulder, serves to distinguish sub-variant 45b from neighboring issues such as 45a, which presents a laureate bust that is both draped and cuirassed. The imperial portrait illustrates the late portraiture of Elagabalus, portraying him at approximately seventeen years of age with mature facial features, elongated sidelocks, and smooth youthful cheeks, in contrast to the horn or ritual appendage found on certain later religious issues. The laurel wreath symbolizes imperial imperium and divine favor, tied at the nape of the neck with fluttering ribbons. The careful execution of the hair curls and fabric folds exemplifies the technical skill maintained by the master celators of the Roman mint during the late Severan era.

Reverse Iconography and Religious Symbolism

The reverse composition presents a dynamic depiction of Victory, winged and draped, flying or advancing rapidly toward the right. She extends both hands forward to hold a diadem or broad triumphal garland. Positioned at ground level beneath and flanking her path are two rounded shields, while an eight-rayed or six-rayed star appears conspicuously in the open upper field. This design uniquely unites traditional Roman military victory with the sun god of Emesa, Elagabal, whose high priest the emperor remained. The star, frequently incorporated into Elagabalus's later coinage, served as a celestial manifestation of the Sol Invictus Elagabal cult transplanted to Rome. The shields and garland invoke the enduring martial protection of the emperor, presenting divine celestial victory as a stabilizing force amid mounting domestic and dynastic instability during the year AD 221.

Inscriptions and Epigraphic Analysis

The obverse inscription reads IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, continuing the dynastic fiction connecting Elagabalus directly to the Antonine line as the purported son of Caracalla. The title Imperator opens the legend, followed by Antoninus Pius and the standard Augustus. The reverse inscription bears the comprehensive magistral formula P M TR P IIII COS III P P, denoting Pontifex Maximus (chief priest), Tribunicia Potestate IIII (in the fourth year of tribunician power), Consul III (consul for the third time), and Pater Patriae (father of the fatherland). The epigraphy is rendered in clean, classical Roman capital letters. The alignment and spacing of the reverse legend encircle the flying Victory, leaving sufficient room in the upper field for the star, which numismatists treat as an intentional visual element rather than a mint mark.

Typology and Chronological Placement

The absolute date of RIC IV Elagabalus 45b is fixed precisely to AD 221 by its epigraphic titulature. Elagabalus renewed his tribunician power annually, with TR P IIII running from late AD 220 or January 1, AD 221 until the renewal to TR P V in late AD 221 or early AD 222. His third consulship (COS III) began on January 1, AD 220, and continued until he assumed his fourth consulship on January 1, AD 222. Within the standard cataloging scheme of Roman Imperial Coinage, type 45 is subdivided on bust variations: 45a displays a laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust, whereas 45b features the laureate and draped bust without armor. Related reverse types struck during this same fourth tribunician year feature Elagabalus sacrificing over an altar, Providentia holding a wand and globe, or Sol advancing with a whip, reflecting the shifting thematic priorities of the imperial mint throughout AD 221.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Monetary Loss

Denarii of RIC IV Elagabalus 45b entered active circulation within an empire-wide monetary network characterized by a blended pool of Severan and earlier coinage. Significant hoard evidence from Britain, Gaul, the Rhine frontier, and the Danubian provinces reveals that denarii of Elagabalus circulated alongside surviving Flavian, Trajanic, and Antonine silver, which were gradually withdrawn through Gresham's law or worn down through continuous exchange. Because Severan denarii maintained a stable debased standard between the reforms of Septimius Severus in AD 194 and the subsequent reforms of Severus Alexander, coins of AD 221 circulated freely without differential tariffs until the mid-third century AD, when hyper-inflated antoniniani of the AD 250s and AD 260s finally caused the systematic melting and loss of early third-century denarii.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 556-558
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 45b. ric.4.el.45b
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. pp. 31, no. 45b