Marcus Aurelius Brass Dupondius, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018

Monetary Context and Denominational Role

During the High Roman Empire, the dupondius served as an essential intermediate bronze denomination, valued at two asses or half a sestertius, with eight dupondii equivalent to one silver denarius. The Antonine currency framework inherited the monetary foundations established under the Augustan reforms, wherein base-metal coinage was split into distinct alloys and values. Sestertii and dupondii were customarily struck from orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc brass, while the lower-value as was struck from pure, reddish copper. To prevent confusion in everyday transactions, where wear or patination could obscure the visual distinction between the brass dupondius and the copper as, the imperial administration employed a consistent visual convention instituted under Nero: the emperor appeared with a radiate crown on the dupondius and with a laurel wreath or bare head on the as. By AD 170 and 171, the Roman financial apparatus was operating under severe fiscal strains caused by prolonged northern military campaigning against the Marcomanni and Sarmatians, compounded by the demographic and economic disruption of the Antonine Plague. Despite these pressures, the mint of Rome maintained the production of brass denominations to fulfill state expenditure, public distributions, and commercial change requirements throughout the empire.

Production and Mint Organization

The entire production of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018 was concentrated at the central imperial mint in Rome. During the Antonine period, the Rome mint was divided into multiple distinct workshops or officinae, each responsible for producing specific denominations and coordinating reverse designs across precious metal and base-metal series. Production relied on manual striking between engraved bronze dies, where the heated orichalcum flan was placed over a stationary anvil die bearing the imperial obverse portrait and struck from above with a handheld reverse punch die. Although die axes during this era were predominantly upright or inverted, variations within the production batches reflect the manual alignment of dies during the striking process. The metallurgical composition of the dupondius during Marcus Aurelius' later reign generally retained a zinc content characteristic of Antonine orichalcum, although slight variations occurred due to the recycling of older bronze scrap and shifts in raw metal supply. Surviving specimens from this general issue show standard middle-bronze weights typically ranging between 10.0 and 14.5 grams, with module diameters averaging between 24 and 27 millimeters.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018 presents a mature, dignified right-facing head of Marcus Aurelius crowned with the radiate solar diadem. The radiate crown, traditionally connected to Sol and Hellenistic divine kingship, had long functioned within the Roman imperial numismatic syntax as a utilitarian denominational signifier for the dupondius, double as, and later the radiate antoninianus. In this portraiture, executed in the expressive Antonine style, the emperor is depicted with a long, segmented philosopher's beard and carefully rendered locks of hair arranged in thick, curling tiers. The facial features reflect the physical strain and solemnity of an emperor actively directing military operations along the Danubian frontier, capturing the Stoic gravitas characteristic of his reign. The surrounding legend begins at the lower left and encircles the portrait, reading clockwise without breaks or with minor spacing tailored to fit the tips of the radiate crown.

Reverse Design and Sacrificial Iconography

The reverse iconography of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018 depicts Marcus Aurelius standing turned toward the left, clad in the traditional Roman toga and veiled capite velato, adhering to the archaic ritual requirements for Roman magistrates and priests performing sacrifices according to the Roman rite. In his extended right hand, the emperor holds a patera, a shallow ritual libation dish, from which he pours an offering over a slender, flame-topped tripod altar positioned before him. In his left hand, lowered along his side or held toward his torso, he holds a folded parchment or papyrus scroll (volumen), representing either the written formula of the vows or the imperial codicil of office. Flanking the lower fields on either side of the tripod and the standing figure are the large capital letters S and C, denoting Senatus Consulto. This sacrificial tableau highlights the piety of the princeps and invokes divine favor, portraying Marcus Aurelius as pontifex maximus fulfilling the religious compact that safeguarded the empire.

Epigraphy and Legend Analysis

The obverse legend reads IMP M ANTONINVS AVG TR P XXV. This inscription abbreviates Imperator Marcus Antoninus Augustus, Tribunicia Potestate XXV. The title Imperator functions here as a praenomen of imperial rank, paired with his official imperial name Marcus Antoninus Augustus. The tribunician power count, TR P XXV, provides the absolute epigraphic framework for dating the strike, denoting his twenty-fifth renewal of the sacrosanct civil magistracy. The reverse inscription reads VOTA SVSCEP DECENN II COS III, accompanied by S C in the field. This expands as Vota Suscepta Decennalia Secunda, Consul Tertium, Senatus Consulto. The phrase indicates that formal public vows (vota) were officially undertaken (suscepta) for the emperor's second ten-year period of rule (decennalia II). Marcus Aurelius reached the milestone of ten full years of imperial authority in March AD 171, having acceded in AD 161 upon the death of Antoninus Pius. The consular notation COS III confirms his third consulate, assumed in AD 161. The letters S C mark the constitutional role of the Senate in sanctioning the bronze coinage of Rome.

Typology and Chronological Classification

The chronological envelope of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018 is securely defined by the combination of Marcus Aurelius' twenty-fifth tribunician year and the undertaking of the second decennial vows. Roman imperial tribunician years during this period were renewed annually on December 10. Consequently, Tribunicia Potestate XXV spanned from December 10, AD 170, through December 9, AD 171. The vota decennalia II ceremonies occurred in early AD 171 to commemorate the completion of his first ten years of reign (AD 161 to 171) and to perform vows for the next decade. Within the broader typology of the Antonine mint, this exact reverse scene was also struck in orichalcum on the sestertius module (RIC III 1014) with a laureate bust, as well as on silver denarii without the S C field mark. In the Roman Imperial Coinage catalog, Harold Mattingly and Edward A. Sydenham classified this dupondius under entry 1018, grouping it with the commemorative votive issues of Marcus Aurelius' later middle-bronze coinage.

Circulation, Wear, and Archaeological Context

Middle bronzes like RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018 circulated extensively throughout the western provinces, including Roman Britain, Gaul, the Rhine frontier, and the Danubian garrisons, as well as across the Italian domestic market. Because dupondii and asses were the primary workhorse denominations for commercial retail, public market transactions, and daily military stipends, they experienced persistent physical handling over prolonged periods. Hoard evidence and stratified urban excavations demonstrate that Antonine dupondii frequently remained in circulation for several decades, often staying in active use well into the third century AD until the debasement of the silver coinage under the Severan and soldier emperors caused widespread disruptions in fractional base-metal circulation. Excavated specimens of this votive dupondius frequently exhibit moderate to extensive surface wear, patination derived from diverse soil chemistries, and edge rounding, reflecting long service in civilian and military economies.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume IV: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. pp. 618-622
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1018. ric.3.m_aur.1018
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 295, no. 1018
4. Die Münzprägung des Kaisers Marcus Aurelius nebst Lucius Verus und Commodus (161-192), Moneta Imperii Romani 18. MIR 18, 170-171