Julia Maesa Silver Denarius, RIC IV Elagabalus 249

Monetary and Dynastic Context

The reign of Elagabalus (218 to 222 AD) saw the re-establishment of the Severan dynasty after the brief interlude of Macrinus. Julia Maesa, sister of the late empress Julia Domna and maternal grandmother of both Elagabalus and Severus Alexander, was the primary architect of this dynastic revival. Upon Elagabalus's accession in 218 AD, Maesa was elevated to the status of Augusta, an honour accompanied by substantial political power and an extensive coinage struck in her name at Rome. Within the Roman monetary hierarchy, the silver denarius remained the everyday workhorse of civic and military payments, despite the introduction of the radiate double denarius (antoninianus) under Caracalla. Denarii issued for the Augustae of the imperial household served an essential ideological role, broadcasting themes of family stability, divine protection, and dynastic perpetuity to both the Roman citizenry and the legions. RIC IV Elagabalus 249 articulates these priorities by invoking Fecunditas, the divine personification of fertility, to highlight the continuity of the imperial bloodline.

Production Standards and Mint Attribution

RIC IV Elagabalus 249 was produced at the imperial mint of Rome, which handled the vast majority of official precious metal coinage for the Western Empire. In terms of metallurgical composition, the Severan denarius had undergone noticeable debasement by the early third century AD. Under Elagabalus, the denarius maintained an average target weight of approximately 3.0 to 3.2 grams, although individual surviving specimens exhibit normal weight dispersion due to manual flan preparation and variable alloy batches. Metallurgical studies of early third-century silver indicate a silver fineness around 40 to 46 percent, balanced by copper. The dies for RIC IV Elagabalus 249 were engraved by skilled artisans at Rome, exhibiting the refined anatomical proportions, deep relief, and elegant drapery rendering typical of the capital's workshops during this phase.

Obverse Portraiture and Style

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 249 features a right-facing bust of Julia Maesa. She is depicted draped in traditional Roman imperial attire, with folds of fabric gathered neatly across the shoulders and bust. The portraiture is notable for its mature, dignified representation, reflecting Maesa's senior status as the matriarch of the dynasty. Her hair is rendered with intricate precision, arranged in horizontal waves that run back from the forehead and temples to be gathered low at the nape in a large, flat chignon or braid turned upward against the head. This hairstyle represents the transitional Severan court coiffure, which evolved from the elaborate layered wigs of Julia Domna into the more structured, compact styles favored by the Severan Augustae of the 220s AD.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse iconography centers on Fecunditas, the Roman personification of fruitful abundance and maternal fertility. Draped in a long stola, Fecunditas stands facing left. In her left arm, she cradles a cornucopiae, the horn of plenty overflowing with the fruits of the earth, symbolizing prosperity, material bounty, and the generous fortune bestowed upon the state by the imperial house. With her right hand, she reaches forward and downward over a small child standing at her feet. This visual formula directly connects maternal care and the birth of heirs to the enduring welfare of the Roman Empire. In the context of Julia Maesa, the child served as an emblem of the upcoming generation of Severan rulers, emphasizing the dynastic reservoir represented by her grandsons, Elagabalus and Severus Alexander.

Epigraphy and Legends

The inscriptions on RIC IV Elagabalus 249 are direct, clear, and standardized. The obverse legend reads IVLIA MAESA AVG, an abbreviated form of Julia Maesa Augusta. By omitting extended patronymics or honorifics, the legend presents her essential imperial title with clarity. The reverse legend reads FECVNDITAS AVG, abbreviating Fecunditas Augustae (or Augusti), translating to 'the Fertility of the Augusta'. Epigraphically, the lettering conforms to the classical capital script of the Rome mint during the Severan period, characterized by well-proportioned, serifed characters. The legends encircle the central motifs clockwise, framed by an exterior border of neat circular dots.

Typology and Chronological Placement

Catalogued in Roman Imperial Coinage Volume IV Part II under Elagabalus as number 249, this issue belongs to the regular silver coinage struck in Rome for Julia Maesa during Elagabalus's reign between 218 and 222 AD. Because the legend FECVNDITAS AVG lacks dated tribunician or consular numbers, its precise annual placement within this four-year window relies on hoard associations and stylistic progression. The type belongs to an extensive program of reverse types struck for Maesa that highlighted virtues and divine protectors, such as Pudicitia, Pietas, Saeculi Felicitas, and Juno. Variants of the Fecunditas motif occur in contemporary Severan issues, including depictions where Fecunditas is seated or holds two children, but RIC IV Elagabalus 249 is uniquely defined by Fecunditas standing left, holding a single cornucopiae, and extending her hand over one child.

Circulation, Hoards, and Monetary Role

Denarii of Julia Maesa of the FECVNDITAS AVG type entered wide circulation immediately upon issue, distributed through official military disbursements, imperial gifts, and administrative expenditures. Hoard evidence from across Roman Britain, Gaul, the German frontiers, and the Balkans demonstrates that these denarii circulated alongside earlier issues of Septimius Severus, Caracalla, and Julia Domna. Because the intrinsic silver content of Severan denarii was relatively uniform from the late reign of Caracalla through Severus Alexander, coins of type RIC IV 249 remained active in currency until the general withdrawal and re-coinage of denarii during the mid-third century AD monetary transformations under Gordian III and Philip I.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 539-540
2. The Metallurgy of Roman Silver Coinage: From the Reform of Nero to the Reform of Trajan Decius. pp. 598-605
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 249. ric.4.el.249
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 50, no. 249