Marcus Aurelius Bronze Sestertius RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017

Monetary and Denominational Context

The sestertius occupied a central position within the high imperial Roman monetary system. Originating as a modest silver fraction in the Republican period, the denomination was transformed under the Augustan currency reform of circa 23 BC into the premier large-module base metal coin of the empire. Valued at one-fourth of a silver denarius or four copper asses, the sestertius was tariffed at one-hundredth of a gold aureus. By the joint and sole reigns of Marcus Aurelius in the second half of the second century AD, the denomination retained its traditional role as the workhorse of substantial daily commercial transactions, accounting, and imperial disbursement. Unlike fractional bronze pieces struck in pure copper, imperial sestertii were cast and struck from orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc alloy often referred to in modern literature as brass. The alloy granted newly minted sestertii a brilliant golden sheen that visually distinguished them from red-copper asses and dupondii. Although the zinc content of imperial orichalcum exhibited a gradual downward trend across the second century AD due to the remelting of circulating scrap, second-century mint masters in Rome maintained rigorous metallurgical standards for large civic bronzes. The broad flan of the sestertius, typically spanning between 30 and 34 millimeters, made it an exceptionally valuable vehicle for public messaging, providing ample space for intricate religious tableaus and programmatic imperial legends.

Production Standards and Mint Organization

Production of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017 was concentrated exclusively at the primary imperial mint in Rome. During the Antonine era, the Rome mint operated under the ultimate oversight of the procurator monetae, staffed by specialized teams of die-engravers (scalptores), blank casters (flaturarii), and striking crews (malleatores and suppositores). Blanks for sestertii were cast in individual or joined moulds, often displaying remnants of casting gates or flan bevels before being heated and hammered between heavy iron dies. While individual surviving specimens of Antonine sestertii typically weigh between 22 and 28 grams, the Rome mint struck sestertii to an al marco target standard based on the Roman pound (libra of approximately 327 grams), yielding roughly twelve sestertii to the pound. Slight variations in individual flan weights were routine and tolerated within base metal fiduciary currency, whose legal face value far exceeded its raw metal value. Die alignment for the issue follows the conventional imperial upright or slightly offset vertical axis (conventionally 12 o'clock or 6 o'clock). The letters S C (Senatus Consulto) prominent in the reverse field formally recorded the traditional constitutional prerogative of the Roman Senate to authorize bronze token issues, even though operational and fiscal control rested firmly within the emperor's bureaucratic administration.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017 presents the mature bust of Marcus Aurelius, depicted as a laureate head turned toward the right. By AD 170 to 171, the portrait tradition of Marcus Aurelius had evolved into his distinctive fourth official portrait type, characterized by deep, philosophical features, heavy-lidded eyes, and an expansive, richly curled beard and hair rendered in the classical Antonine style. The plastic treatment of the hair reflects high Antonine sculptural conventions, employing drill work and engraved grooves to create strong contrasts of light and shadow. The laurel wreath encircling the imperial brow serves as an enduring symbol of supreme civil and military authority, bound at the nape with ribbon ties that cascade down the back of the neck. The laureate head without drapery or cuirass emphasizes civic majesty and religious continuity over martial aggression, presenting the ruler as the wise paterfamilias and first citizen of the state. Die cutting across different working anvils demonstrates minor variations in the fullness of the beard and the exact angle of the laurel ties, yet all conform strictly to the official palace prototypes disseminated to the urban mint.

Reverse Typology and Religious Iconography

The reverse iconography of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017 captures a solemn sacrificial scene deeply rooted in Roman public religion. Marcus Aurelius stands facing left, fully draped in the civic toga. Crucially, a section of the toga is pulled up over his head (capite velato), designating him in his supreme sacral office as Pontifex Maximus. In his extended right hand, he holds a shallow offering dish (patera), pouring a libation over a lighted tripod altar set upon the ground before him. In his left hand, lowered along his side, he clasps a ceremonial papyrus roll (rotulus), which contained the prescribed sacred formulas of the state prayers. This composition visually embodies the fulfillment and renewal of public vows. The sacrificial act depicted is unbloody and reverent, contrasting with grander multi-figure scenes of animal sacrifice (suovetaurilia) found on contemporary medallions. Flanking the lower fields on either side of the tripod and emperor are the bold letters S and C. The balanced, harmonious design emphasizes the emperor's personal piety (pietas) as the vital intermediary securing the pax deorum (peace of the gods) for the Roman world, particularly crucial at a moment when the state was beset by plague, famine, and northern incursions.

Epigraphy and Titulature Analysis

The inscriptions on RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017 provide precise historical and chronological information through highly abbreviated imperial titles. The obverse legend reads IMP M ANTONINVS AVG TR P XXV, rendered continuously in a clockwise arc from the lower left. The component IMP represents Imperator, functioning as a praenomen of imperial majesty. M ANTONINVS records his adopted imperial nomen and cognomen, while AVG abbreviates Augustus. The chronological anchor of the issue is TR P XXV, designating the emperor's twenty-fifth renewal of the tribunician power (Tribunicia Potestas), which commenced around December 10, AD 170, and concluded in December AD 171. The reverse inscription reads VOTA SVSCEP DECENN II COS III, accompanied by the senatorial mark S C in the field. The phrase VOTA SVSCEP DECENN II expands epigraphically to Vota suscepta decennalia secunda ('vows undertaken for the second decade of rule'). Under Roman imperial religious practice, vows were formally undertaken (vota suscepta) and subsequently paid (vota soluta) in multi-year intervals, notably ten-year cycles (decennalia). Having formally succeeded Antoninus Pius in March AD 161, Marcus reached his tenth anniversary in AD 171, prompting the undertaking of vows for his second decade. The title COS III records his third consulship, entered in AD 161 and held without subsequent renewal throughout the remainder of his life. The letters S C abbreviate Senatus Consulto, ratifying the senatorial decree behind the coinage.

Typological Sequences and Dating

Within the typology of Antonine bronze coinage, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017 forms an integral part of the vow-coinage sequence struck across gold, silver, and aes denominations during the year AD 170 to 171. The commencement of Marcus Aurelius's TR P XXV in December AD 170 directly intersected with his decennial anniversary year of AD 171. Parallel issues in the monetary program include denarii and aurei bearing the matching legend VOTA SVSCEP DECENN II, as well as companion issues marking vows undertaken for the health of the emperor (vota decennalia susceptionis). Numismatists, including Harold Mattingly in The Roman Imperial Coinage and Wolfgang Szaivert in his chronological corpus (MIR 18), classify this type within the regular Rome mint emissions of the sixth issue of Marcus Aurelius's sole reign following the death of Lucius Verus in AD 169. It is catalogued distinctly from neighboring sestertius varieties that feature slight variations in bust truncation, radiate crowns (dupondii), or distinct titles such as the subsequent addition of Germanicus in late AD 172. The issue was produced in a cohesive run during AD 171, commemorating the successful completion of ten years of imperial administration and supplicating the gods for another decade of stability.

Circulation Patterns and Monetary Role

The sestertii of Marcus Aurelius entered an extensive, integrated western monetary zone where brass and copper coins moved freely from central Italy to the military frontiers along the Rhine and Danube, as well as Britannia and the Gallic provinces. Hoard evidence and archaeological site finds across northern and western Europe demonstrate that second-century sestertii experienced prolonged circulation lives, frequently remaining in active exchange for several decades, and in some contexts persisting until the monetary disruptions of the mid-third century AD. Because of their large physical volume and fiduciary nature, sestertii were extensively handled, resulting in significant progressive wear on surviving specimens. The Vota series of AD 170 to 171 circulated alongside earlier Antonine and Hadrianic bronzes, serving to pay regional taxes, settle market debts, and support military logistics during the northern campaigns. The presence of the piety-themed reverse on an everyday brass denomination assured wide public exposure to imperial religious vows, projecting reassurance and continuity to civilian populations during an era plagued by the Antonine pestilence and severe border warfare.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum (BMCRE), Vol. IV: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. pp. 614-617, nos. 1400-1405
2. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 295, no. 1017
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Marcus Aurelius 1017. Type ric.3.m_aur.1017
4. Die Münzprägung des Kaisers Marcus Aurelius in Wien (MIR 18). pp. 210-215, emission 171