Elagabalus Silver Denarius RIC IV Elagabalus 36

Monetary Context

During the reign of Elagabalus (AD 218 to 222), the Roman imperial monetary system continued the structural and metallurgical trajectories initiated under Septimius Severus and Caracalla. The silver denarius remained the central unit of state accounting, day-to-day military pay, and urban commerce throughout the empire, despite the introduction of the double denarius (antoninianus) under Caracalla. Production of the antoninianus waned and ceased entirely during the early years of Elagabalus, leaving the denarius as the principal silver denomination struck at the imperial capital. The metal content of the denarius under Elagabalus was substantially debased compared to early imperial precedents. Extensive metallurgical analyses, including studies by Walker and later confirmations through modern compositional techniques, demonstrate that the denarius during this period stabilized at approximately forty to forty-five percent fine silver, with copper forming the balance. Dies for RIC IV Elagabalus 36 were prepared to strike pieces weighing on average between 2.8 and 3.2 grams. In terms of state expenditure, these coins financed the imperial household, administrative salaries, military stipends, and the extravagant religious ceremonies centered on the cult of Elagabal at Rome.

Production and Mints

The entire attested production of the catalogue type RIC IV Elagabalus 36 was executed by the primary imperial mint at Rome. While eastern provincial and military mints such as Antioch also struck denarii for Elagabalus, the distinct epigraphic rendering, neat flan preparation, and stylistic execution of this quadriga issue firmly assign it to the central mint workshops in Rome. At Rome, the mint operated through organized officinae, producing dies carved in high relief with characteristic Severan stylistic conventions. Blanks were cast in moulds and struck hot between an upper reverse die and a lower obverse die embedded in an anvil. Surviving specimens show careful die alignment, predominantly conforming to standard Roman vertical or near-vertical die axes (roughly twelve o'clock or six o'clock), though minor rotational drift occurred naturally during high-volume manual striking.

Obverse Design and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC IV Elagabalus 36 depicts the youthful portrait of Elagabalus facing right. The emperor is shown laureate and draped, viewed from the side or slightly from behind, wearing the paludamentum over a tunic. His portrait adheres to the official imperial iconography established early in his reign, emphasizing his nominal descent from Caracalla by presenting soft, idealized facial features, large eyes, and neatly cropped curly hair bound by the laurel wreath. Minor engraving variations occur across different obverse dies, particularly in the arrangement of the laurel ties falling behind the neck, the fullness of the drapery over the far shoulder, and the exact rendering of the adolescent facial profile. However, all genuine dies conforming to this specific type retain the laureate and draped bust facing right, without cuirass or other martial attributes.

Reverse Iconography

The reverse of the type features a complex ceremonial tableau steeped in traditional Roman triumphal and consular imagery. Elagabalus stands facing left inside a slow-moving quadriga, or four-horse chariot (currus triumphalis). The horses advance at a deliberate walking pace, their heads and legs arranged across the lower field in staggered perspective. The emperor is portrayed laureate and draped, holding an olive branch aloft in his right hand to symbolize the restoration of peace and civic harmony, while his left hand cradles an eagle-tipped sceptre (scipio eburneus), a premier attribute of consular dignity and imperial majesty. Positioned behind the emperor in the body of the chariot stands a miniature winged figure of Victory. She is depicted crowning the emperor with a laurel wreath held above his head, an iconic compositional element echoing traditional triumphal processions celebrated along the Via Sacra to the Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus on the Capitoline Hill. This scene conveys the themes of triumphant authority, imperial fortune, and peaceful governance, potentially reflecting the emperor's ceremonial entrance into his third consulship in January AD 220.

Inscriptions and Epigraphy

The obverse legend reads IMP ANTONINVS AVG, running clockwise from the lower left around the border of dots. The inscription emphasizes his official throne name, Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, intentionally invoking the heritage of the Antonine dynasty and his claimed paternity by Caracalla. The omission of the praenomen and longer familial lineage reflects the standard, concise denarius formula utilized by the mint of Rome beginning in AD 219. The reverse inscription reads P M TR P III COS III P P, expanding to Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate Tertia, Consul Tertium, Pater Patriae. This detailed titulature lists the primary constitutional foundations of imperial rule: Chief Priest, holder of Tribunician Power for the third time, Consul for the third time, and Father of his Country. The epigraphy is characterized by well-formed capital letters with small serifs, typical of the mature Severan period at Rome.

Typology and Chronological Placement

The chronological placement of RIC IV Elagabalus 36 is fixed precisely to AD 220 by its titular combination of TR P III and COS III. Elagabalus entered his third consulship alongside Publius Valerius Comazon on January 1, AD 220, while his third annual tribunician power commenced around the same period, running through late AD 220. Within the broader typology of Severan coinage, this denarius forms part of a series of ceremonial issues celebrating the consular inauguration and the regime's public legitimacy. Parallel reverse types bearing the same legend and date portray the emperor sacrificing over a tripod or seated on a curule chair, but the slow quadriga type is among the most elaborate and prestigious compositions produced in the precious-metal denominations for that minting period. The type is closely catalogued alongside aurei and bronze medallions sharing similar triumphal quadriga iconography.

Circulation and Archaeological Evidence

Denarii of Elagabalus struck at Rome, including RIC 36, circulated widely across both the western provinces and the Danubian and eastern frontiers. Hoard evidence from Roman Britain, Gaul, Germany, and Syria demonstrates that coins of this issue were integrated into monetary circulation alongside earlier Severan silver, Antonine denarii, and subsequent issues of Severus Alexander. Because of their debased silver content, denarii from this period were not hoarded selectively over older, purer coins; rather, they formed the bulk of everyday transactional currency until the massive monetary crises of the mid-third century AD. Wear patterns on recovered specimens range from lightly circulated pieces found in regional military deposits to heavily worn examples retrieved from long-lived savings hoards buried during the reigns of Decius, Gallienus, and Postumus, reflecting decades of active hand-to-hand exchange.

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 36. ric.4.el.36
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 31, no. 36