Elagabalus Silver Denarius RIC IV Elagabalus 63

Monetary Context and Denominational Setting

During the early third century AD, the silver denarius remained the primary coin denomination used for military pay, imperial administration, and interregional market transactions across the Roman Mediterranean. Under Elagabalus, who governed under the official imperial name Marcus Aurelius Antoninus from AD 218 to 222, the denarius experienced continuing metallurgical pressures established during the reigns of Septimius Severus and Caracalla. Following Caracalla's introduction of the double denarius, or antoninianus, in AD 215, the Roman monetary system contained two competing silver denominations. Under Elagabalus, the antoninianus was produced in substantial numbers early in the reign before being phased out in favour of a massive return to the traditional single denarius around AD 219. RIC IV Elagabalus 63 represents this renewed commitment to the denarius. In metallurgical terms, denarii of this issue adhere to the debased Severan silver standard, which typically possessed an average silver content ranging between 40 and 48 percent, with base copper comprising the remainder of the alloy. The mean striking weight for Roman denarii of this phase hovered between approximately 3.00 and 3.25 grams, though individual specimens fluctuate due to rapid, imprecise blank casting and subsequent surface wear during circulation. The issue functioned as fiduciary currency whose legal value within imperial borders exceeded the intrinsic worth of its bullion content, permitting the imperial treasury to meet extensive administrative outlays.

Production and Mint Organization

The production of RIC IV Elagabalus 63 is securely attributed to the imperial mint situated in Rome. During this era, the metropolitan mint operated an organized system of workshops, or officinae, each staffed by specialized engravers, flan casters, and moneyers. The stylistic unity visible across surviving dies of this type reflects the established traditions of the capital's engraving staff, distinguishing it from eastern provincial and imperial branch mints such as Antioch, which struck related types with distinctly provincial portraiture and different letterforms. Blanks were cast in clay or bronze moulds, reheated to maintain ductility, and placed between engraved bronze or iron dies before being struck manually with a single or double hammer blow. Die axes for this issue usually demonstrate a regular upright or inverted orientation, characteristic of third-century Roman mint discipline. Because this type does not carry an explicit officina mark, scholars deduce mint attribution through comparative hoard statistics, die links, and the stylistic execution of the imperial portrait and epigraphy. The Rome mint achieved substantial output of the CONSERVATOR AVG reverse type, as attested by the multiplicity of distinct obverse and reverse die pairings observed across modern corpus studies and major institutional hoards.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 63 presents an imperial bust facing to the right, showing Elagabalus as a youthful emperor. In the standard catalogue description, the bust is laureate and draped, viewed from behind or the side. The laurel wreath rests upon neatly arranged curly hair, with the ties falling down the back of the neck. The drapery consists of a paludamentum or mantle folded over the shoulder, conveying traditional civil and military authority without overt eastern religious attributes. This depiction intentionally aligns the teenage ruler with the established portrait conventions of the Severan house, closely mirroring late youthful portraits of Caracalla. This iconographic continuity was politically vital, serving to substantiate the claim that Elagabalus was the natural son and legitimate heir of Caracalla, rather than a regional usurper. Portrait styles within the issue show subtle developmental variation: earlier dies render a softer, adolescent countenance with delicate facial contours, while slightly later dies portray a broader facial structure and a more pronounced jawline. Unlike the emperor's later issues from AD 221 to 222, which frequently present him wearing the horned headdress or the ceremonial robes of the high priest of Emesa, RIC IV Elagabalus 63 adheres strictly to conventional Roman imperial portraiture.

Reverse Iconography: Sol Conservator

The reverse design of RIC IV Elagabalus 63 is dedicated to the solar deity. The central figure is Sol, radiate and naked except for a chlamys or cloak draped over his left shoulder and billowingly flying behind his body as he advances briskly toward the left. Sol raises his right hand in an open gesture of divine greeting, beneficence, and cosmic authority, while his left hand holds a whip, the classic attribute of the sun god who drives the celestial four-horse chariot across the sky. In the left or upper field sits a prominent six-pointed or eight-pointed star. This star reinforces the celestial sphere and emphasizes the cosmic nature of the deity. The integration of Sol into Roman coinage possessed long-standing precedents under earlier emperors, but under Elagabalus the motif acquired additional layers of meaning. While utilizing the standard iconography of Roman Sol, the reverse subtly bridges native Roman sun worship with the Syrian solar cult of Elagabal, of which the emperor served as hereditary high priest. However, the iconography remains carefully restrained within classical parameters, avoiding the explicit depiction of the Emesene black sacred stone (baetyl) that characterized more provocative ritual types later in the reign.

Epigraphy and Legends

The legends on RIC IV Elagabalus 63 are composed in standard classical Latin capital script, struck along the outer perimeter of the design within fine beaded borders. The obverse legend reads IMP ANTONINVS PIVS AVG, beginning in the lower left and continuing clockwise around the flan. The formula abbreviates Imperator Antoninus Pius Augustus. By adopting the name Antoninus alongside the honorifics Pius and Augustus, the administration underscored continuity with the Antonine dynasty and reaffirmed the official state narrative of paternity linking the ruler directly to Caracalla. The absence of consular iterations or tribunician numbers makes the obverse legend a continuous formula used across several years of the reign. On the reverse, the legend reads CONSERVATOR AVG, an abbreviation of Conservatori Augusti in the dative case or Conservator Augusti in the nominative. The phrasing designates the deity as the protector, guardian, and savior of the emperor. The title conservator was traditionally invoked in imperial religion during times of political instability to declare that the ruler ruled under the direct watch and personal protection of a specific divinity. The lettering is regular, with straight-limbed letters characteristic of the Rome mint during the Severan period.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the foundational typology established by Harold Mattingly and Edward A. Sydenham in Roman Imperial Coinage, volume IV, part II, RIC 63 is catalogued among the Rome mint issues of Elagabalus. While the broad catalogue bracket encompasses the full span of the reign from AD 218 to 222, subsequent specialized numismatic studies refine the chronological placement of this specific type. Because the obverse inscription lacks tribunician dates, dating relies primarily on stylistic comparisons with dated coinages bearing TR P II (AD 219) and TR P III (AD 220). The portraiture, fabric, and legend composition place the principal production of RIC 63 in the middle phase of the Rome mint's output, circa AD 219 to 220. It directly precedes the major administrative reorganization and religious elevation of AD 221 to 222, when reverse types transitioned toward explicit sacerdotal themes such as INVICTVS SACERDOS AVG and SVMMVS SACERDOS AVG. Within the type, minor die varieties exist, principally involving slight variations in the drape of the cloak, the placement of the star relative to the god's head and raised hand, and the presence of cuirassing on certain obverse dies alongside the standard drapery. RIC 63 remains distinct from contemporary eastern mint issues of the same legend, which display local Antioch die work and differing reverse arrangements.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Economic Role

Coins of the type RIC IV Elagabalus 63 circulated widely throughout the military frontiers and commercial centres of the Roman world. Hoard evidence from Roman Britain, the Rhine and Danube limes, Gaul, and the eastern provinces demonstrates that denarii of Elagabalus were rapidly distributed via state expenditures, primarily the payment of legionary stipends and imperial administrative salaries. In large third-century coin hoards, such as the Shapwick and Dorchester hoards in Britain or the Eauze hoard in France, denarii of Elagabalus appear regularly alongside those of Septimius Severus, Caracalla, and Severus Alexander. Despite the political condemnation and damnatio memoriae directed at Elagabalus following his assassination in AD 222, his silver coinages were not systematically withdrawn from circulation. Because third-century silver coins were valued intrinsically by weight and alloy rather than purely by imperial persona, specimens of RIC 63 remained in daily commercial usage for decades, often showing moderate to heavy circulation wear in mid-to-late third-century contexts until the currency reforms of Aurelian and Diocletian ultimately phased out the classic denarius denomination.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 535-538
2. The Severan Silver Coinage: Metallurgy, Output and Circulation. Revue Numismatique, 6e série
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 63. ric.4.el.63
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. pp. 33-34, no. 63