Domitian Copper As, RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 322

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

The copper as held a foundational role within the reformed imperial monetary framework established by Augustus and reaffirmed by the Flavian dynasty. Under Emperor Titus, who governed the Roman world from June 79 to September 81 AD, the production of base-metal coinage served vital public, commercial, and ideological ends. The as was valued at one-fourth of a brass sestertius, one-half of a brass dupondius, and one-sixteenth of the standard silver denarius. While sestertii and dupondii were struck in orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc brass, the as was traditionally produced from relatively pure red copper or related copper alloys. This metallurgical distinction visually separated the as from the dupondius, even when flan diameters were comparable, though radiate crowns were also applied to dupondius portraits to provide clear denomination recognition. During the joint consulship of Titus and Domitian in 80 AD, Rome was recovering from both the catastrophic eruption of Mount Vesuvius in 79 AD and a devastating three-day fire in the capital itself. Sustaining regular civic emissions of copper denominations was vital to maintaining market confidence, providing small change for daily urban commerce, and ensuring the fluid distribution of imperial subsidies. Striking issues in the name of Domitian as Caesar reinforced the stability of the dynastic line, signaling to the Roman public and provincial markets that imperial authority and succession were secure under the Flavian house.

Production Standards and Mint Organization

The entire attested issue of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 322 was struck at the imperial mint of Rome. Operating under the administrative oversight of the imperial equestrian bureaucracy and staffed by specialized mint slaves and freedmen, the mint of Rome was organized into distinct officinae or workshops. Base-metal strikings of the Flavian era demonstrate high levels of technical competence, utilizing heavy iron dies hand-carved by skilled engravers. Flans for asses were cast in multiple-cavity molds before being heated and struck between an obverse die fixed in an anvil and a reverse die driven by a handheld hammer. Like other imperial base-metal issues, the as was minted al marco, meaning that moneyers struck a predetermined count of coins from each Roman pound of metal rather than individually calibrating the weight of each blank. Consequently, weights for authentic Flavian asses generally range between 9.50 and 11.50 grams, with typical flan diameters measuring between 26 and 28 millimeters. The die alignment often adheres to a regular or near-regular vertical axis, typical of Rome's mechanized workshop traditions in the late first century AD.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Representation

The obverse displays a right-facing portrait of Domitian, depicted as Caesar. His head is adorned with a laurel wreath, tied at the occiput with hanging ribbon ties. The engraving style represents the mature Flavian portraiture that evolved at the Rome mint between 79 and 81 AD, combining veristic family traits with idealized imperial composure. The head exhibits the heavy, rounded chin, strong jawline, and straight nasal profile characteristic of Vespasian's sons, though smoothed to reflect Domitian's relative youth in his late twenties. Unlike his later portraits as Augustus, which show a more pronounced muscular neck and increasingly stylized features, this issue captures Domitian during his subordinate tenure as Caesar under his elder brother's reign. The laurel wreath functions as an emblem of sacred and triumphal distinction, reflecting the honors accorded to the imperial house after the Jewish War and the established conventions of the imperial family's public imagery.

Reverse Iconography: The Personification of Aequitas

The reverse composition is centered on the personification Aequitas, who stands draped and facing left. In her right hand she holds a pair of balance scales (libra) poised horizontally, while her left arm cradles a measuring rod or long sceptre (pertica). The large letters S and C flank her figure in the left and right fields respectively. Aequitas was one of the central civic virtues celebrated on Flavian currency. In Roman thought, Aequitas denoted fairness, rectitude, and honest standard measurements, especially regarding state fiscal management, the purity and weight of the coinage, and the fair distribution of grain and imperial donatives. Her scales symbolize precise adjudication and equity in fiscal transactions, while the pertica denotes standard measuring and administrative authority. In conjunction with the accompanying legend, the design affirmed that the imperial administration under Titus, supported by Domitian, operated on principles of fairness and integrity toward Roman citizens.

Epigraphy and Legend Analysis

The legends on this type provide critical administrative and chronological data, executed in the refined lapidary capitals characteristic of Flavian mint engravers. The obverse legend reads: CAES DIVI AVG VESP F DOMITIAN COS VII. This inscription expands in Latin to Caesar Divi Augusti Vespasiani Filius Domitianus Consul Septimum. Translated into English, it declares: 'Caesar Domitian, son of the deified Augustus Vespasian, Consul for the seventh time.' The title 'Divi Augusti Vespasiani Filius' asserts Domitian's divine lineage following the formal deification of Vespasian by the Senate in 79 AD. The consular dating 'COS VII' provides an exact chronological anchor: Domitian entered his seventh ordinary consulship on January 1, 80 AD, serving alongside Titus, who entered his eighth consulship at the same time. The reverse legend reads: AEQVITAS AVGVST, expanding to Aequitas Augusti, meaning 'The Equity of the Emperor.' The field inscription S C represents Senatus Consulto ('By decree of the Senate'). While base-metal coinage was planned and struck at the imperial mint under the princeps, the traditional inclusion of S C preserved the constitutional fiction of senatorial oversight over the bronze and copper currency of Rome.

Typological Classification and Chronological Placement

In the standard reference corpus for the period, The Roman Imperial Coinage (Volume II, Part 1, second edition, 2007), this specific issue is designated as Titus 322. It forms part of an extensive copper-alloy issue struck at Rome for Domitian during the final two years of Titus's reign. The issue dates securely to the window of 80 to 81 AD based on Domitian's seventh consulship, which terminated only with his accession to the supreme title of Augustus in September 81 AD following Titus's unexpected death. Within the broader typology of Flavian aes, type 322 belongs to a cohesive programmatic series of asses and dupondii that emphasized civic virtues, including Pax, Spes, Salus, and Felicitas. It is distinct from earlier asses struck for Domitian under Vespasian bearing lower consular iterations (such as COS II through COS VI), and from his subsequent autonomous imperial coinage as Augustus, where his legends immediately adopted the titles IMP CAES DOMITIANVS AVG P M. Surviving examples of RIC 322 demonstrate that die engravers maintained consistent letter forms and portrait proportions across the production run.

Circulation Patterns and Monetary Life

As base-metal coins designed for everyday retail use, asses of this type circulated actively throughout Rome, peninsular Italy, and the western provinces of the Roman Empire, including Gaul, Britannia, and the Rhine-Danube frontier zones. The denomination rarely travelled in significant quantities to the eastern provinces, which maintained robust civic and provincial bronze systems striking in local denominations and Greek inscriptions. Because copper coinage possessed low intrinsic value relative to gold and silver, asses were subject to prolonged transactional wear. Studies of Flavian coin hoards and site finds reveal that asses issued under Titus frequently remained in active circulation for decades, occasionally surviving in use well into the second century AD through the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian, and the Antonines. Consequently, many recovered specimens display moderate to heavy surface wear, corrosion from ground burial, and occasional countermarks from later administrative re-evaluations.

References

1. The Roman Imperial Coinage: Volume II, Part 1: Vespasian to Domitian (AD 69-96). p. 222, no. 322
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire (OCRE): RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 322. ric.2_1(2).tit.322
3. Coinage and Finances in the Reign of Domitian, A.D. 81-96. pp. 15-28
4. Coinage in the Roman World. pp. 86-94