Septimius Severus Silver Denarius RIC IV Septimius Severus 2

Monetary Context and the Civil War of AD 193

The monetary system of the High Roman Empire underwent profound stress following the assassination of Commodus on the final day of AD 192. Pertinax briefly attempted fiscal and monetary reform, attempting to restore public finances and raise the silver fineness of the denarius, but his murder by the Praetorian Guard after only eighty-seven days threw the empire into civil war. When Didius Julianus purchased the imperial purple, three provincial commanders rose in rebellion: Pescennius Niger in Syria, Clodius Albinus in Britain, and Septimius Severus in Pannonia Superior. Proclaimed emperor at Carnuntum in April AD 193, Severus moved swiftly across Italy, securing the capital without armed resistance in early June. With the imperial treasury depleted, Severus confronted urgent military expenses, including a substantial donative promised to the soldiers who elevated him. In response, the Rome mint resumed intensive denarius production under Severan authority. Rather than maintaining the elevated silver purity attempted by Pertinax, the Severan administration lowered the intrinsic value of the denarius, reducing the fine silver content from approximately eighty percent down toward seventy-five percent or lower. Denarii struck under this early issue, such as RIC IV Septimius Severus 2, served as immediate vehicles of payment to troops while circulating as the principal silver currency of everyday commerce throughout the Roman world.

Mint Organization and Production at Rome

RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 was struck exclusively at the imperial mint in Rome. Upon his arrival in the capital, Severus displaced the previous administration of Didius Julianus and mobilized the central mint workshops to issue coinage bearing his likeness and political messaging. The legionary series was an immense undertaking requiring dozens of die pairs across multiple officinae to celebrate individual legions. Die carvers at Rome in AD 193 initially had no longstanding tradition of Severan portraiture, relying at first on stylistic conventions inherited from late Antonine and Pertinax dies, gradually creating a distinctive Severan likeness characterized by crisp curls and a pointed beard. In terms of physical production, flans were cast in open or tiered moulds, adjusted to a target weight standard typically hovering between 2.8 and 3.4 grams, and struck hot between hardened iron dies. The execution of the legionary issues exhibits signs of rapid, high-volume striking, including minor die clashes, slight off-center strikes, and variable flan thickness. Despite the pressures of wartime emission, the Rome mint retained its technical superiority in engraving precision over the contemporary emergency mints operated by Pescennius Niger in the East or Severus's later auxiliary installations at Alexandria and Emesa.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse of RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 features the right-facing, laureate head of Septimius Severus. In the earliest emissions of AD 193, the imperial profile exhibits realistic, individualized features: a broad cranium, prominent aquiline nose, and an arched brow framed by tight, layered curls on the crown and a neatly trimmed, undulating beard. The laurel wreath, tied at the nape of the neck with its ribbons trailing downward onto the truncated neck, serves as the ancient emblem of victory, imperium, and sacred authority. By adopting a regal and austere bearing reminiscent of Marcus Aurelius and Pertinax, Severus visually aligned himself with legitimate imperial predecessors rather than appearing as a predatory usurper. The engraving is rendered in medium to high relief, with fine linear modeling around the facial musculature and the ear. Variation across surviving dies manifests in subtle shifts in the angle of the head, the density of the beard curls, and the length of the truncation, reflecting the hands of multiple artisans working simultaneously across the active workshops of the Rome mint.

Reverse Iconography: The Legionary Standards of Legio I Adiutrix

The reverse iconography of RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 portrays the supreme insignia of the Roman army. At the center stands an aquila, the legionary eagle, perched on a low plinth or horizontal bar, facing left with wings displayed or partially folded. Flanking the eagle on either side are two military standards (signa). Each standard consists of a tall vertical staff mounted with phalerae (medallions denoting military honors) and transverse bars, crowned by decorative finials or hand-like maniples. This heraldic arrangement was an iconic motif in Roman coinage, immortalized over two centuries earlier by Mark Antony on his pre-Actium legionary denarii. In the context of AD 193, the image served as a sacred acknowledgment of military fidelity. The legionary eagle represented Jupiter's presence and the vital soul of the legion, while the accompanying signa embodied the tactical identity of the individual cohorts. Dedicated specifically to Legio I Adiutrix, this reverse proclaimed the unshakeable bond between the new emperor and his veteran soldiers, assuring both the troops and the Roman citizenry that the armed forces stood united behind the new dynasty.

Epigraphy and Imperial Titulature

The inscriptions on RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 encapsulate the political strategy and constitutional positioning of the early Severan regime. The obverse legend reads IMP CAE L SEP SEV PERT AVG, which resolves to Imperator Caesar Lucius Septimius Severus Pertinax Augustus. The adoption of the cognomen Pertinax was a calculated political gesture, announced to court favor with the Senate and populace of Rome who mourned the murdered emperor, while simultaneously presenting Severus as the avenger of illegitimate tyranny. The reverse legend is inscribed as LEG I ADIVT TR P COS. The military dedication LEG I ADIVT identifies Legio I Adiutrix (the First Rescuing Legion), originally raised under Nero and Galba from fleet personnel and long stationed at Brigetio along the middle Danube. Following the legionary name, the constitutional abbreviations TR P (Tribunicia Potestate, exercising tribunician power) and COS (Consul) date the issue precisely to Severus's first year of reign before his assumption of a second consulship on January 1, AD 194. The epigraphy is rendered in clean, classical Roman capitals without punctuation stops, set clockwise within an outer border of dots.

Typology and Chronological Classification

RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 occupies an early position in the modern classification of Severan numismatics, catalogued by Harold Mattingly and Edward Sydenham in volume IV of The Roman Imperial Coinage. The legionary emission to which it belongs constitutes Severus's very first major silver issue from Rome, struck beginning around June AD 193 and terminating in late 193 or early 194. Within this sequence, Severus issued denarii honoring at least fifteen individual legions that formed his power base or had recognized his legitimacy, primarily those stationed in Pannonia, Moesia, Dacia, and the Rhine. Parallel reverse varieties exist across the legionary group, including companion issues for Legio I Adiutrix in gold aurei (RIC IV Septimius Severus 1), as well as denarii for sister legions such as Legio II Adiutrix, Legio I Italica, and Legio VIII Augusta. The disappearance of TR P COS in early AD 194 in favor of titles reflecting Severus's second consulship (COS II) and new military victories provides an absolute terminus ante quem for the production of RIC IV Septimius Severus 2. Die link studies confirm that reverse dies dedicated to Legio I Adiutrix occasionally shared obverse dies with other Pannonian legion types, illustrating contemporaneous striking within the same mint officina.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Economic Role

Following its distribution to legionaries in the form of donatives and ordinary pay, RIC IV Septimius Severus 2 entered broad circulation throughout the western and Danubian provinces. In hoard records across Britain, Gaul, Germany, and the Balkans, early Severan denarii frequently appear alongside late Antonine issues of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus. Because the intrinsic silver content of Severus's initial Rome issues was lower than that of pre-193 coinage, older Antonine denarii tended to be hoarded or melted down in accordance with Gresham's law, allowing the prolific Severan issues to become the dominant circulating currency of the early third century. Wear patterns on surviving specimens range from virtually uncirculated pieces preserved in military frontier hoards to heavily worn examples that remained in daily market transactions well into the reign of Severus Alexander and the Gordians. The legionary types struck for western legions like Legio I Adiutrix are particularly prevalent in military camp excavations throughout Pannonia and Upper Moesia, demonstrating that much of the currency paid to the marching soldiers returned directly to civilian and military economies along the Danubian limes.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. V: Pertinax to Elagabalus. pp. 21-23
2. The Metallurgy of Roman Silver Coinage: From the Reform of Nero to the Reform of Trajan Decius. pp. 581-599
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Septimius Severus 2. ric.4.ss.2
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. IV, Part I: Pertinax to Geta. pp. 92-93, no. 2