Marcus Aurelius Gold Aureus, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8

Monetary Context and the Accession of 161 AD

The aureus catalogued as RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8 belongs to the initial monetary emission produced immediately following the death of Antoninus Pius on March 7, 161 AD. The transition of imperial authority marked a watershed moment in Roman administrative history: for the first time, two emperors shared the supreme title of Augustus with equal constitutional prerogatives, with Marcus Aurelius as Pontifex Maximus and Lucius Verus as his imperial colleague. The Antonine monetary system rested upon a stable bimetallic foundation anchored by high-purity gold aurei and silver denarii. While silver suffered minor adjustments in fineness over the course of the Antonine dynasty, gold aurei retained exceptional purity, regularly exceeding 98 to 99 percent fine gold. Struck at a theoretical standard of approximately 45 aurei to the Roman pound (libra), yielding target individual weights in the vicinity of 7.25 to 7.30 grams, the denomination played an indispensable fiscal role. Aurei formed the primary vehicle for high-level state expenditures, including imperial gifts, donatives (donativa) distributed to the legions and Praetorian Guard upon an accession, and long-distance commercial payments.

Mint Organization and Production at Rome

All specimens of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8 were manufactured exclusively at the centralized imperial mint in the city of Rome. During the middle of the second century AD, the Rome mint operated with highly organized administrative workshops (officinae) capable of processing substantial bullion inflows into uniform planchets. Gold blanks were carefully cast and adjusted to meet legal weight requirements before being struck between engraved iron or bronze dies. The die engraving of this issue reflects the refined academic classicism characteristic of the late Antonine court. Engravers executed portraits and reverse figures with plastic modeling, low relief, and balanced composition. The physical production was subject to tight administrative scrutiny, as discrepancies in gold coin weights had direct fiscal consequences for the imperial treasury. The surviving die links among early 161 AD issues demonstrate a coordinated output where reverse dies proclaiming imperial harmony were paired with both laureate and bare-headed obverse portrait types across the active officinae.

Obverse Iconography

The obverse of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8 features the bare head of Marcus Aurelius facing right. Unlike many parallel gold issues that portray the senior emperor wearing the laurel wreath of victory, this type deliberately showcases the princeps without headgear. This bare-headed portraiture emphasizes Marcus Aurelius's civic modesty and philosophical restraint, attributes heavily cultivated by the emperor and his circle. His features present mature facial contours, a trimmed curly beard, and tightly waved hair characteristic of Antonine stylistic conventions. The absence of the laurel wreath serves to visually moderate imperial triumphalism, presenting Marcus Aurelius primarily as a magistrate and citizen-emperor embarking on shared constitutional duties. The surrounding inscription runs clockwise along the outer border, framing the profile within the imperial titles.

Reverse Iconography and the Clasp of Hands

The reverse composition presents a carefully balanced civic scene: Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus stand facing one another, clad in togas, clasping their right hands. In their lowered left hands, each co-emperor holds a rolled scroll (volumen), symbolizing their legal competence, consular authority, and shared administration of the Roman state. The joined right hands (dextrarum iunctio) constitute one of the most enduring symbols of Roman legal and social union, traditionally employed in wedding iconography to signify marital fidelity (concordia). Transferred into the political sphere, the clasp of hands affirms unconditional political trust, mutual respect, and unified governing will between the two Augusti. By presenting both rulers in equal scale and identical attire, the composition provides a powerful visual reassurance against civil strife, assuring the Roman Senate, the urban plebs, and the military that the imperial college stood undivided.

Epigraphy and Titulature Analysis

The obverse legend reads IMP CAES M AVREL ANTONINVS AVG, an abbreviation for Imperator Caesar Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Augustus. This titulature establishes Marcus Aurelius's lineage through adoption by Antoninus Pius, preserving the prestigious Antonine dynastic name while invoking the core military and civilian titles of the principate. On the reverse, the legend is divided into two distinct components: the thematic dedicatory title CONCORDIAE AVGVSTOR, and the chronological dating formula TR P XV COS III. CONCORDIAE AVGVSTOR represents the dative singular 'Concordiae Augustorum' ('To the Concord of the Augusti'), dedicating the coin type directly to the divine personification that preserves harmony between the rulers. The dating formula indicates Marcus Aurelius's fifteenth renewal of tribunician power (Tribunicia Potestate XV) and his third consulship (Consul III), dates that precisely anchor the minting of this coin to the year 161 AD.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the standard classification of Roman Imperial Coinage, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8 designates the specific combination of the bare-headed obverse portrait of Marcus Aurelius with the Concordia Augustorum reverse carrying TR P XV and COS III. Mattingly and Sydenham placed this coin among the earliest emissions of Marcus Aurelius's sole authority following Pius's decease in early 161 AD. In Wolfgang Szaivert's modern chronological framework (Moneta Imperii Romani 18), the issue belongs to Emission 1 of 161 AD. Parallel issues within the same emission share identical reverse imagery but display alternate obverse bust varieties, such as laureate heads (RIC 9) or bust treatments with drapery and cuirass. Furthermore, corresponding types were simultaneously struck in the name of Lucius Verus (bearing his own obverse name and tribunician reckoning), reinforcing the deliberate symmetry of the monetary program throughout the opening months of their joint reign.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Preservation

Aurei of this accession type circulated extensively throughout the commercial and military zones of the Roman Empire, though their precious metal content protected them from everyday retail wear. Gold coinage was commonly stored in hoards, used in elite transactions, or carried across borders to finance diplomatic subsidies and external trade. Hoard evidence from western provinces such as Gaul and Britain, as well as finds from the Danubian and eastern frontiers, regularly includes Antonine aurei struck early in the joint reign. Because gold was rarely demonetized or called in unless degraded by weight loss, specimens of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8 often remained in circulation for several decades, occasionally appearing in hoards deposited as late as the Severan era. Many surviving examples exhibit moderate circulation wear, while others preserve sharp die details, indicating rapid deposition or prolonged private retention following their initial distribution as donatives.

References

1. Le Buste monétaire des empereurs romains. Vol. 1, pp. 245-250
2. The Roman Aurei, Volume I: From the Republic to the Fall of the Western Empire. p. 343, no. 1827
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. pp. 214-215, no. 8
4. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Marcus Aurelius 8. ric.3.m_aur.8
5. Die Münzprägung des Kaisers Marcus Aurelius in Wien (MIR 18). Emission 1, 161 AD