Aquilia Severa Silver Denarius RIC IV Elagabalus 225

Monetary Context and Religious Ideology

During the reign of Elagabalus (AD 218 to 222), the silver denarius remained the primary transactional silver denomination across the Roman Empire, despite severe debasement that had progressed since the reforms of Septimius Severus and Caracalla. While Caracalla introduced the double denarius or antoninianus around AD 215, the production of that radiate denomination diminished sharply under Elagabalus, leaving the denarius as the workhorse denomination for military pay, administrative expenses, and urban commerce. Severan denarii of this epoch were struck on a silver standard typically hovering between 40 and 46 percent fine, with an average target weight of approximately 3.0 to 3.2 grams, though individual specimens often exhibit considerable variance due to batch al-marco minting procedures. The monetary issues in the name of Julia Aquilia Severa served an intensely political and religious purpose. A daughter of the jurist Quintus Aquilius Sabinus, Aquilia Severa was a Vestal Virgin when Elagabalus broke centuries of sacred Roman tradition to marry her in late AD 220. Ancient legal and religious custom dictated that unchaste Vestals be buried alive, making the marriage an unprecedented shock to traditionalists. Imperial propaganda sought to immediately neutralize public revulsion through the medium of the imperial coinage. Denarii such as RIC IV 225 utilized established visual vocabulary, such as Concordia and sacrificial ritual, to reframe an act widely viewed as sacrilege into a sacred union of cosmic necessity, meant to foster divine harmony and guarantee imperial succession.

Production and Mints

RIC IV Elagabalus 225 was produced exclusively by the principal imperial mint at Rome. Unlike earlier Severan issues and certain contemporary eastern emissions struck at Antioch or Nicomedia, the official coinage for Aquilia Severa originated from the metropolitan workshops of the capital. Numismatists have noted that the Rome mint during Elagabalus's reign operated with multiple officinae, though the denarii themselves do not carry formal officina marks. Instead, individual workshop activity is deduced through stylistic analysis, die-linking studies, and reverse typology groupings. The mechanical production of these denarii followed standardized Roman minting methods. Flans were cast in open or tiered moulds, often leaving slightly irregular or beveled edges, and were struck hot between hardened iron or bronze dies. The dies for RIC IV 225 display the classic Rome mint style of the early 220s AD, characterized by refined bust modeling, finely articulated hair strands, and precise lettering with neat serifs. Die axes are predominantly oriented at 12 o'clock or 6 o'clock, reflecting the regular alignment practices of the central mint in Rome.

Obverse Iconography and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 225 presents a dignified portrait of Julia Aquilia Severa, rendered as a draped bust facing right. Her hair is arranged in a classic Severan court style, waved horizontally along the temples in tight parallel ridges before being folded upward and fastened at the back of the head in a broad, braided plait or chignon. This coiffure closely echoes the hairstyle popularized by Julia Domna and Julia Maesa, projecting a continuity of dynastic decorum and matronly virtue. The portrait captures the youthful features of the empress, rendered with classical proportions and understated elegance. By adhering strictly to traditional imperial portrait conventions, the die-engravers deliberately downplayed her former identity as a Vestal Virgin, avoiding any distinctive Vestal regalia such as the infula or suffibulum, and instead emphasizing her newly elevated status as Augusta. The drape of her garment is shown bunched softly around the base of the neck, adhering to the standard presentation of Severan imperial women.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse of the type features Concordia, the Roman personification of marital harmony and political concord, standing draped and facing left. In her right hand, Concordia holds a patera, a shallow libation bowl, from which she pours a liquid offering over a small, lighted altar placed at her feet to the left. In her left hand, she cradles a double cornucopiae, the horn of plenty overflowing with fruits and grain, symbolizing abundance, fertility, and the prosperous fruits of a harmonious union. A crucial iconographic detail is the celestial star located in the upper left field, positioned just above or near the altar. Under Elagabalus, the star is an explicit numismatic attribute symbolizing the divine presence of Elagabal, the Syrian sun god of Emesa whom the emperor served as hereditary high priest. The conjunction of Concordia, sacrificial pietas over an altar, and the solar star visually articulates the theological pretext of the marriage: a divinely sanctioned union between the chief priest of Elagabal and a former priestess of Vesta, meant to invoke celestial favor upon the empire.

Inscriptions and Epigraphy

The obverse inscription reads IVLIA AQVILIA SEVERA AVG, executed in continuous lettering following the rim from lower left to lower right. The legend fully records her family names and bestows the supreme female imperial title of Augusta (AVG), officially signaling her elevation to the status of empress alongside Elagabalus. The lettering is cleanly cut in balanced Roman square capitals, with standard Severan letterforms featuring well-defined terminals. The reverse inscription consists simply of the single word CONCORDIA, displayed prominently along the outer perimeter. The legend directly names the personified virtue depicted on the coin. In imperial ideology, Concordia was an indispensable theme for marriages within the imperial household, underscoring both marital agreement and civil peace. On this issue, the epigraphic brevity reinforces the unequivocal message of state and domestic unity, contrasting sharply with the contentious public sentiment surrounding the marriage.

Typology and Chronological Classification

RIC IV Elagabalus 225 belongs to the restricted coinage issued for Aquilia Severa during Elagabalus's reign. The chronology of her issues is divided into two distinct historical phases. Her first marriage to Elagabalus took place in late AD 220, following his divorce from Julia Paula. Under immense political pressure from his grandmother Julia Maesa and the Praetorian Guard, Elagabalus divorced Aquilia Severa in mid-AD 221 to marry Annia Faustina. However, within months, Elagabalus repudiated Annia Faustina and reunited with Aquilia Severa in late AD 221, continuing their marriage until their overthrow in March AD 222. Because the obverse and reverse legends of RIC IV 225 lack explicit regnal dates such as tribunician numbers or consulships, dating depends on stylistic comparison with the dated issues of Elagabalus. The presence of the star in the field is a hallmark of the emperor's later coinage, appearing consistently from AD 220 through 222 in connection with the formal institutionalization of the cult of Elagabal. Harold Mattingly and Edward Sydenham catalogued this type as RIC 225, alongside minor variations featuring single cornucopiae or alternate altar positions, representing the standard silver denarius type struck across both periods of her tenure as Augusta.

Circulation and Archaeological Context

Denarii of Aquilia Severa, including RIC IV 225, had a relatively brief emission window compared to the prolific issues of Julia Maesa or Elagabalus himself. As a result, specimens of this type appear in considerably lower frequencies within coin hoards throughout the western and eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. When found in hoards buried during the mid-to-late third century AD, such as those from Roman Gaul, Britain, and the Danubian frontiers, these denarii often exhibit moderate to heavy wear, indicating that they circulated alongside earlier Severan and Antonine silver long after the downfall of the dynasty. Despite the violent deposition and damnatio memoriae suffered by Elagabalus upon his assassination in March AD 222, coins of his wives were not subjected to systematic official recalls or defacement. Instead, the intrinsic metal value of the debased silver ensured that RIC IV 225 remained in general circulation until the monetary collapses and wide-scale antoninianus re-tariffing of the mid-third century drove older denarii from daily trade into hoards or recycling melts.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 559-560, nos. 184-186
2. Description historique des monnaies frappees sous l'Empire romain, Tome IV. p. 367, no. 2
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Elagabalus 225. ric.4.el.225
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 59, no. 225