Macrinus Silver Antoninianus, RIC IV Macrinus 95e

Monetary Context and the Antoninianus

The antoninianus, or radiate double denarius, was first introduced into Roman imperial circulation in early 215 AD under Caracalla. Created as a fiscal solution to escalating military expenditures and inflationary pressures, the new denomination was officially tariffed at two denarii despite containing only roughly one and a half times the silver content of a contemporary denarius. Following Caracalla's assassination in April 217 AD, Macrinus assumed the imperial purple amidst severe budgetary strain, exacerbated by enormous indemnities promised to the Parthian Empire and substantial military pay demands. Rather than abolishing the overvalued radiate silver denomination, the administration of Macrinus maintained its production alongside standard denarii to conserve precious metal reserves. The silver alloy of Macrinus's antoniniani typically exhibited an average fineness of approximately 50 to 52 percent, continuing the debasement trajectory initiated by the Severan dynasty. Because the coin over-tariffed silver relative to base metal, it yielded a seigniorage profit for the imperial treasury, although public hoarding of older, purer denarii accelerated in response. The issue of RIC IV Macrinus 95e represents this tenuous fiscal moment, standing as one of the final substantial issues of the first generation of radiate silver before the denomination experienced steep production declines under Elagabalus and eventual cessation under Severus Alexander.

Production and Mint Organization

The entire regular emission of RIC IV Macrinus 95e was produced at the mint of Rome. A critical operational reality of Macrinus's reign was that the emperor never visited the capital; his accession occurred in Syria, and his administration remained stationed at Antioch until his overthrow. Consequently, die engravers at the Rome mint executed imperial portraiture without the benefit of a direct imperial presence, relying instead on official imperial despatches, plaster models, or initial descriptions dispatched from the imperial headquarters. Production was organized across several officinae (workshops), where blanks were cast in molds and struck manually between engraved bronze or iron dies. The die axis for this issue was generally aligned to an upright or inverted orientation, predominately twelve o'clock or six o'clock, reflecting the standardized mechanical habits of the Rome mint. Physical flans were carefully prepared to meet a theoretical weight standard centering between 4.8 and 5.2 grams, with diameters usually ranging between 21 and 23 millimeters. Traces of filing on blank edges and occasional flan cracks from high-pressure cold or warm striking testify to the rapid pace of coin manufacture necessary to supply continuous pay disbursements to administrative and military personnel.

Obverse Design and Iconography

The obverse of RIC IV Macrinus 95e features the right-facing bust of Macrinus wearing a radiate crown, which served as the universal diagnostic marker of a double-denomination coin in third-century Roman base and precious metal series. The specific subtype 95e is defined by a bust that is cuirassed without civilian drapery, emphasizing the military character of the imperial office. Engravers rendered the emperor with a short, cropped beard, a feature that distinguishes the early and intermediate phases of Macrinus's coinage. When the news of Caracalla's death reached Rome, engravers initially produced portraits heavily influenced by Caracalla's severe, short-bearded likeness. As detailed dispatches arrived from Syria later in 217 AD, the portraiture transitioned toward a distinctive representation showing a mature, balding man with a neatly trimmed beard. The cuirass is typically adorned with an embossed breastplate and stylized leather pteruges visible at the shoulder. The rendering conveys imperial gravitas, authority, and vigilance, presenting the new equestrian-born ruler as a seasoned, capable commander able to safeguard the Roman frontiers.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse of the coin presents a full-length personification of Securitas, draped in traditional Roman stola, seated facing left upon a backless throne or stool. In her right hand she holds a vertical sceptre, a conventional emblem of divine and imperial sovereignty, while her left arm rests on the seat or props her head in a posture denoting profound repose and absolute freedom from anxiety. Before her stands a low, cylindrical or rectangular altar, depicted with flames ascending from its surface. The iconographical pairing of Securitas with a burning sacrificial altar reinforces the religious dimension of political safety: the security of the empire was understood to derive from meticulous maintenance of the pax deorum (peace with the gods) through regular state sacrifices. In the volatile climate following the assassination of Caracalla, the retreat of Roman forces from Mesopotamia, and discontent within the legions, the regime utilized the concept of Securitas Temporum ('The Security of the Times') as an aggressive counter-narrative to reassure the senatorial elite and the broader Roman populace that civic order, military defense, and administrative continuity remained firmly established.

Epigraphy and Titulature

The inscriptions on RIC IV Macrinus 95e are executed in crisp Roman capital lettering along the perimeter of both faces. The obverse legend reads IMP C M OPEL SEV MACRINVS AVG, expanding in full to Imperator Caesar Marcus Opellius Severus Macrinus Augustus. Notably, Macrinus incorporated the prestigious cognomen 'Severus' into his official titulature upon accession. Because he possessed no genuine blood tie to the dynasty founded by Septimius Severus, this epigraphic choice was an explicit act of political branding intended to placate the praetorians and legionaries devoted to the memory of the Severan house. The reverse bears the programmatic legend SECVRITAS TEMPORVM, proclaiming the security of the modern era. The absence of numbered imperial offices such as the tribunician power (Tribunicia Potestas) or consulship on the reverse legend leaves the issue unburdened by annual administrative formulas, allowing the coins to circulate uninterrupted as a continuous ideological statement throughout his reign. Letter forms display typical Rome mint characteristics of the era, such as small triangular serifs, standardized ligature spacing, and occasional compacting of letters to fit the circular die margin.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the standard classification of Roman Imperial Coinage, major type 95 encompasses Macrinus's antoniniani with the SECVRITAS TEMPORVM reverse, subdivided into lettered varieties based upon bust drapery and orientation. Variety 95e specifically denotes the radiate, cuirassed bust facing right, without the civilian paludamentum found on varieties such as 95a or 95b. Chronologically, this emission falls between the middle of 217 AD and the early months of 218 AD. Scholars such as Curtis Clay have demonstrated that Macrinus's Rome mint coinage progressed through three distinct portrait phases: an initial group featuring a short, rounded beard closely imitating Caracalla; an intermediate group with a distinctive, neatly trimmed rectangular beard; and a final group introduced late in 217 or early 218 AD showing an elongated, flowing philosopher's beard. The cropped beard seen on 95e anchors its execution to the earlier half of this sequence. The Securitas type was struck simultaneously across multiple denominations, appearing in identical iconographic formats on denarii, quinarii, sestertii, and middle bronzes, proving that it served as an empire-wide thematic campaign rather than an isolated reverse motif.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Survival

Coins of RIC IV Macrinus 95e circulated widely across western and Danubian provinces, as well as in the Italian peninsula, traveling primarily through commercial exchange and military disbursements. However, because Macrinus ruled for only fourteen months, his overall volume of coinage was significantly smaller than that of long-reigning Severan predecessors. In regional hoard deposits from Roman Britain, Gaul, Germany, and the Balkans, antoniniani of Macrinus consistently appear as a minor component, typically constituting less than one or two percent of third-century silver hoards buried prior to the mid-260s AD. Following Macrinus's defeat at the Battle of Antioch in June 218 AD and the accession of Elagabalus, the new regime declared a damnatio memoriae against Macrinus and his son Diadumenian. While base metal sestertii were frequently defaced or melted down, silver coins such as 95e were largely retained in circulation due to their intrinsic precious metal value, though many were subsequently withdrawn and reminted during later monetary reforms under Decius, Trebonianus Gallus, and Valerian. Surviving examples today exhibit wear patterns typical of prolonged circulation well into the middle of the third century AD.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 498-503
2. The Chronology of the Reign of Macrinus. Numismatic Chronicle 139 (1979), pp. 21-40
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Macrinus 95e. RIC IV Macrinus 95e
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 11, no. 95