Nero Sestertius, RIC I (second edition) Nero 148

Monetary Context and Reform

The sestertius catalogued as RIC I (second edition) Nero 148 was produced following the radical monetary reform introduced by Nero in approximately AD 64. For the first decade of his reign, base-metal coinage had been almost entirely absent from western imperial circulation, leaving the marketplace dependent upon older Julio-Claudian issues and worn regional imitations. When large-scale brass and copper striking resumed, the imperial administration overhauled the denomination system, aligning token denominations with a revamped metrological structure. The sestertius remained the premier large base-metal denomination, valued at four asses or one quarter of a silver denarius. Nero briefly experimented with striking smaller denominations in golden-toned orichalcum as well as red copper, but the sestertius retained its traditional composition as an orichalcum coin throughout this period. The introduction of monumental pictorial themes on these expansive flans served both an economic purpose, injecting substantial token liquidity into central Italy, and an ideological purpose, presenting imperial accomplishments across the commercial channels of the Roman world.

Production and Mint Attribution

Numismatic scholarship firmly assigns RIC I (second edition) Nero 148 to the primary imperial mint at Rome. While Nero also established an active western branch mint at Lugdunum (modern Lyon) to supply the Rhine frontier and Gallic provinces, the dies of RIC 148 exhibit the stylistic and technical hallmarks of Rome workshops. Dies cut at Rome during this period are distinguished by high-relief modelling, classical portrait rendering, and an absence of the small globe or aegis termination typically found at the point of the bust on contemporary Lugdunum sestertii. Flans for the Rome sestertii were cast from orichalcum, a zinc-copper alloy offering a bright brassy finish that distinguished the denomination from copper asses and dupondii. Die alignment for these imperial issues was predominantly regularized to either the six o'clock or twelve o'clock axis. Production volumes for the triumphal arch series were substantial, as demonstrated by the survival of numerous distinct obverse and reverse die pairings across public and private collections.

Obverse Iconography

The obverse of RIC 148 features the laureate head of Nero facing left, executed in the mature, realistic portrait manner that emerged after AD 63. Rejecting the idealized, slender proportions of his youth, the Rome celators depicted Nero with a thick neck, prominent facial contours, and an elaborate coiffure consisting of concentric rows of curls arranged in tiers above the forehead, often associated with the coma in gradus formata style. The laurel wreath rests securely upon his head, tied at the nape with fillets trailing downward. The left-facing portrait orientation constitutes an intentional typological pairing within Nero's sestertius series, counterbalancing issues bearing right-facing portraits. The die cutters used the broad flan area to render delicate anatomical details, including subtle modeling of the cheek, jawline, and brow, projecting an imposing image of imperial majesty.

Reverse Iconography and Architectural Design

The reverse of RIC 148 provides a detailed numismatic depiction of an imperial triumphal arch, viewed from a three-quarter perspective that exposes both the frontal facade and the left side of the structure. The arch was decreed by the Senate in AD 58 to commemorate the subjugation of Armenia and military achievements under Gnaeus Domitius Corbulo, though construction and numismatic representation occurred years later on the Capitoline Hill. The central archway is flanked by Corinthian columns and decorative relief panels depicting historical or mythological narratives. In the pediment or attic zone above, a monumental statue group crowns the monument: Nero stands in a triumphal quadriga escorted by the goddess Victory, who holds a wreath and palm branch. Accompanying niches and pedestals support freestanding statues identified by numismatists as Mars, Pax, and attendant soldiers. The rendering of the arch in deep perspective represents a sophisticated technical accomplishment in classical die-engraving, conveying spatial depth and sculptural richness on a flat coin surface.

Epigraphy and Inscriptions

The obverse inscription reads NERO CLAVDIVS CAESAR AVG GER P M TR P IMP P P, running clockwise continuously around the portrait. The epigraphic sequence expresses Nero's full official nomenclature: Nero Claudius Caesar Augustus Germanicus, followed by his chief sacral and administrative offices: Pontifex Maximus (chief priest), Tribunicia Potestate (possessor of tribunician power), Imperator (supreme military commander), and Pater Patriae (father of the fatherland). Lettering is executed in bold, classic Roman capitals with neat serifs and regular spacing. On the reverse, the legend is reduced to the letters S C, positioned symmetrically in the left and right fields flanking the base of the triumphal arch. The abbreviation denotes Senatus Consulto ('by decree of the Senate'), marking the traditional constitutional sanction for Roman base-metal coinage and maintaining the formal fiction of joint administration between princeps and Senate.

Typology and Chronological Placement

Within the typology established by C. H. V. Sutherland in the revised edition of The Roman Imperial Coinage, RIC 148 belongs to the primary emission of orichalcum sestertii struck at Rome between approximately AD 64 and 65. The triumphal arch theme appears across several catalogue entries distinguished by portrait direction, presence or absence of an aegis, and minor variations in legend truncation. While RIC 147 features the laureate head facing right, RIC 148 strictly designates the laureate head facing left with the full legend terminating in P P. The arch motif was eventually phased out around AD 65 to 66 in favor of other prominent reverse designs, such as the Temple of Janus with closed doors, the harbor of Ostia, and the seated Annona and Ceres, which reflected contemporary civic achievements and domestic security in the capital.

Circulation, Metrology, and Physical Evidence

Specimens of RIC 148 conformed to the Augustan sestertius metrological target, which centered around twenty-five to twenty-eight grams with flan diameters typically spanning thirty-four to thirty-six millimeters. Surviving hoards and excavation contexts indicate that these large Rome-minted sestertii circulated widely throughout the Italian peninsula and the western provinces of the Roman Empire, often remaining in active commercial circulation for decades. Many examples demonstrate substantial wear, countermarking, or deliberate defacement associated with the period of civil war in AD 68 to 69 and Nero's damnatio memoriae. Because orichalcum possessed significant intrinsic and decorative appeal, worn sestertii of this series were frequently retained in currency pools well into the Flavian and Antonine eras, as confirmed by their presence in mixed imperial hoards across Roman Britain, Gaul, and Germany.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume I: Augustus to Vitellius. pp. 211-213, nos. 183-190
2. The Western Coinages of Nero (Numismatic Notes and Monographs 161). pp. 144-152
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC I (second edition) Nero 148. ric.1(2).ner.148
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume I (revised edition). p. 162, no. 148