Severus Alexander Silver Denarius, RIC IV Severus Alexander 235

Monetary and Historical Context

The coinage of Severus Alexander (AD 222-235) represents the closing chapter of the Severan monetary system, a phase defined by attempts at administrative stability followed by mounting fiscal pressures driven by foreign conflict. Upon the accession of Severus Alexander following the assassination of Elagabalus, imperial authorities made deliberate efforts to restore traditional Roman religious and civil norms. In the monetary sphere, the production of the radiate double denarius, commonly termed the antoninianus, was suspended entirely at Rome in favor of a singular reliance on the traditional silver denarius, supplemented by an extensive bronze and gold coinage. By AD 231, the relative peace that had characterized the first half of the reign deteriorated. The rise of the Sasanian dynasty under Ardashir I posed a direct military threat to Rome's eastern provinces, prompting the emperor and imperial court to mobilize large expeditionary forces toward Syria and Mesopotamia. Mobilizing these armies required substantial cash infusions to meet military pay, bonuses, and provisioning. The issue catalogued as RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 falls directly into this wartime expenditure period. Although the denarius under Severus Alexander preserved a relatively regular nominal weight of around 3.0 to 3.2 grams, its silver fineness had leveled at approximately 40 to 45 percent, continuing the debasement trajectory begun under Septimius Severus and Caracalla. This coin type operated as prime transactional currency for the Roman legions and state officials right up to the emperor's death on the Rhine frontier in AD 235.

Production and Mint Organization

RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 was produced exclusively at the primary imperial mint located in Rome. While earlier Severan emperors had operated auxiliary branch mints in the East, such as Antioch, to fund regional campaigning, Severus Alexander centralized nearly all denarius production in the capital throughout his reign, shipping massive quantities of freshly minted coin to theaters of war as required. The mint of Rome during this period operated via organized workshops, known as officinae, which divided production to ensure continuous output of gold, silver, and bronze denominations. Die studies of the later Severan denarii indicate a systematic process of die cutting, where standard portraits and stock reverse personifications or deities were executed by skilled celators. Surviving specimens of RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 demonstrate disciplined die alignment, predominantly clustering near the traditional upright or inverted positions (six o'clock or twelve o'clock). Flans were cast in open or capped molds before being struck hot between engraved bronze or iron dies. The high volume of surviving specimens indicates that multiple die pairings were employed simultaneously across the workshops assigned to the emperor's late silver issues.

Obverse Iconography

The obverse of RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 features a right-facing bust of Severus Alexander wearing the laurel wreath of victorious imperium. Unlike his earlier adolescent depictions characterized by slender features and smooth modeling, the portraits associated with this late series present a visibly mature ruler. The bust is fully draped and cuirassed, visible at the truncation of the neck and across the shoulder. The rendering of the military cuirass beneath the imperial mantle deliberately projects the emperor's role as supreme commander of the Roman legions, a visual emphasis that grew increasingly prominent after AD 230. The laurel wreath is executed with defined ties that fall behind the nape of the neck, and the hair is cut in the compact, curled style characteristic of third-century military portraits, accompanied by short, neatly cropped sideburns and beard. The stylistic execution of the portraiture at Rome remained remarkably consistent during this phase, showing careful attention to naturalistic facial contours while conforming strictly to dynastic portrait traditions.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse iconography of RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 is dedicated to Jupiter Propugnator, the supreme Roman sky god envisioned as an active combatant and champion. The deity stands facing front in a dynamic, aggressive stance with his legs braced wide apart. His body leans toward the left while his head turns sharply to the right, looking back over his shoulder in a classic Hellenistic martial posture. In his raised right hand, Jupiter brandishes a fiery thunderbolt, prepared to strike down the enemies of Rome, while his left arm is extended or drawn back to counterbalance the dramatic physical motion, occasionally holding a chlamys or mantle fluttering behind him. This aggressive representation departs from the customary static types of Jupiter holding a sceptre and patera that predominated in earlier imperial issues. In the context of the early 230s AD, this martial visualization conveyed an unambiguous message: the supreme deity of the Roman pantheon was actively defending the state, the legions, and the imperial house against external foes. By invoking Jupiter Propugnator, the coin tied the security of the empire directly to divine martial favor during the Persian expeditions.

Epigraphy and Legends

The inscriptions on RIC IV Severus Alexander 235 are engraved in clean, classical Latin capitals, encircling the inner rim of both faces without mintmarks or officina letters. The obverse legend reads IMP ALEXANDER PIVS AVG. This formulation represents a significant chronological indicator within Severus Alexander's numismatic corpus. Earlier in the reign, his typical obverse titulature read IMP C M AVR SEV ALEXAND AVG or IMP SEV ALEXAND AVG. The adoption of the simplified and pointed formula IMP ALEXANDER PIVS AVG occurred around AD 231, coinciding with the launch of his Persian expedition. The inclusion of PIVS elevated filial duty, religious devotion, and moral rectitude to the forefront of his imperial image, while dropping the extended Antonine names in favor of his primary personal cognomen. The reverse legend reads IOVI PROPVGNATORI, phrased in the dative case of dedication: 'To Jupiter the Defender' or 'To Jupiter the Champion.' Dedicatory legends of this kind were explicitly religious formulas, framing the coin itself as an offering of devotion and an appeal for divine protection. The epigraphy across both faces is regular, with well-formed letterforms, square-bottomed letters, and consistent inter-letter spacing typical of the Rome mint.

Typology and Chronological Sequence

In the standard typological arrangement established in The Roman Imperial Coinage (Volume IV, Part II), this denarius is catalogued as number 235 under the reign of Severus Alexander. The type belongs to the emperor's fifth and final numismatic group, defined typologically by the obverse legend IMP ALEXANDER PIVS AVG and historically by the military campaigns between AD 231 and his death in early 235. Because the reverse legend does not record tribunician years (tribunicia potestas) or consulships, the type cannot be pinned to an individual calendar year. Instead, numismatists date the issue broadly to the bracket of AD 231 to 235 based on the inception of the PIVS titulature. Parallel issues displaying the identical Jupiter Propugnator reverse were struck in gold (aurei) and base metals (sestertii and dupondii), demonstrating a coordinated propaganda program across all denominations. RIC IV 235 is distinguished from neighboring issues, such as RIC IV 238 or 239, by the specific combination of the draped and cuirassed laureate bust on the obverse and the unencumbered hurling posture of Jupiter without additional miniature figures or regional attributes.

Circulation, Hoards, and Archaeological Evidence

Denarii of the late Severus Alexander issues, including RIC IV 235, saw intensive circulation across the entirety of the Roman Empire, with particularly dense representation in military zones along the Rhine and Danube frontiers, as well as in the eastern provinces. As one of the last large-scale, uniform denarius issues produced before the denomination was progressively sidelined by the reintroduction of the antoninianus under Maximinus Thrax and Balbinus, Pupienus, and Gordian III, these coins remained an integral component of Roman silver circulation well into the mid-third century. Hoard evidence provides extensive documentation for the movement and longevity of this type. RIC IV 235 regularly appears in military hoards buried during the turbulent decades of the 240s and 250s AD across Britannia, Gaul, and the Germanies, such as the Falkirk Hoard in Scotland and various Limes hoards in Raetia and Pannonia. Because the fineness of the denarius plummeted further under subsequent rulers, Severan denarii from the early 230s were frequently hoarded and selectively pulled from circulation in accordance with Gresham's Law. Many recovered specimens show moderate to heavy wear consistent with several decades of active transactions before final deposition.

References

1. Coin Hoards and Hoarding in the Roman Empire. pp. 85-112
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC IV Severus Alexander 235. ric.4.sa.235
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume IV, Part II: Macrinus to Pupienus. p. 86, no. 235
4. Under Divine Auspices: Divine Ideology and the Visualisation of Imperial Power in the Severan Period. pp. 195-224