Titus Silver Denarius, RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361

Monetary and Political Context

The death of Vespasian on 23 June AD 79 posed the first dynastic succession challenge of the Flavian period. Although Titus had served as virtual co-ruler with his father for nearly a decade, holding multiple consulships, the tribunician power, and the praetorian prefecture, the formal transition of autocratic power remained sensitive in the collective memory of the civil wars of AD 68 and 69. Titus moved swiftly to secure the deification of his father by the Senate, initiating the formal cult of Divus Vespasianus. The silver denarius catalogued as RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361 forms an integral part of this consecration programme, which gained major momentum during Titus's second full year of rule in AD 80. Within the contemporary Roman monetary system, the denarius remained the cornerstone of civic and military transactions throughout the empire. Valued at sixteen bronze asses or four brass sestertii, the silver piece circulated broadly among soldiers, merchants, and urban populations. Commemorative and consecration issues were not mere presentation medals; they were integrated directly into the general currency pool. By using the imperial mint to disseminate imagery of the newly consecrated Vespasian, Titus achieved two vital objectives simultaneously: satisfying the steady imperial demand for precious-metal coinage and reaffirming the divine lineage of the reigning emperor. The presence of the deified founder on current coin types effectively elevated Titus to the status of divi filius, replicating a potent Augustan ideological model.

Production and Mint Organization

All securely attributed examples of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361 originate from the primary imperial mint located at Rome. Following the concentration of precious-metal striking in the capital during the middle years of Vespasian's reign, the Rome mint monopolized denarius output for the central empire, ensuring consistent metallic composition and administrative oversight under the procurator monetae. Although western provincial mints had functioned during the civil wars and early Flavian reconstruction, by AD 80 the mint of Rome operated in organized officinae capable of synchronizing major parallel issues of imperial and commemorative types. Technically, the issue adhered to the silver standard established late in Vespasian's reign. Flavian denarii of this period were struck with an alloy typically around 80 to 82 percent silver, with the remainder composed of copper and trace elements. The targeted weight standard centered near 3.25 grams, though individual surviving specimens naturally exhibit modest variations around 3.0 to 3.4 grams due to pre-modern blank manufacturing tolerances and subsequent circulation wear. Production involved traditional hot striking between engraved bronze or iron dies. Die alignment for the series frequently conforms to a predominantly upright or inverted axis, reflecting standard mint practices of the early Flavian officinae.

Obverse Iconography

The obverse of this type features the laureate head of Divus Vespasian facing right. Rather than presenting the heavily idealized or youthful features sometimes seen in earlier Julio-Claudian consecration issues, the portrait maintains the recognizable veristic traits characteristic of Vespasian's lifetime portraiture: a broad cranium, pronounced facial contours, a firm chin, and lined features. At the same time, the inclusion of the laurel wreath, traditionally associated with triumph and Apollo, is combined with the solemn honorary title to signal the subject's apotheosis and posthumous sacred status. The die engraving demonstrates the refined craftsmanship of the Rome mint engravers active during the reign of Titus. The relief is moderate, striking a balance between portrait depth and operational durability under repeated mechanical pressure. While slight variations exist in the truncation of the neck and the treatment of the laurel ties behind the head across different individual working dies, the core composition remains uniform: an unadorned, dignified portraiture facing right, framed by the circular obverse legend.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse iconography of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361 depicts an ornate tensa, or ceremonial processional carriage, proceeding slowly to the left and drawn by a team of four horses. Rather than a conventional open triumphal chariot, the vehicle is rendered in the distinctive form of a miniature, richly ornamented temple or vaulted aedicula. The side panels of the carriage body are articulated with architectural elements and relief carving, while the upper structure is surmounted by miniature figures of Victory. In Roman religious practice, the tensa was a sacred vehicle employed during the pompa circensis to convey the effigies, exuviae, and divine attributes of the gods from the Capitol to the Circus Maximus before the commencement of the public games. Following formal consecration by the Senate, a deceased and deified emperor was granted the supreme honor of having his own tensa included within this sacred procession. The slow quadriga depicted on the coin captures this solemn ceremonial movement. The Victories crowning the roof evoke Vespasian's military triumphs, particularly the pacification of the empire and the victory in the Jewish War, while the temple-like body signifies that the occupant is no longer merely a mortal imperator, but a divus enshrined among the state deities.

Epigraphy and Legends

The inscriptions on RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361 are concise and laden with constitutional meaning. The obverse reads DIVVS AVGVSTVS VESPASIANVS, running continuously around the portrait. This legend definitively sets the coin apart from lifetime issues, which invariably carried Vespasian's titles such as IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG with consular and tribunician designations. The title DIVVS was an exclusive legal designation reserved for rulers formally voted apotheosis by the Senate, confirming that the subject had ascended to the ranks of the gods. The reverse inscription consists solely of the formula EX S C, an abbreviation for Ex Senatus Consulto ('by decree of the Senate'). In earlier imperial silver coinage, senatorial authorization formulas were uncommon, as the emperor theoretically exercised supreme control over the precious-metal emissions of the empire. Its prominent placement on this denarius serves a specific ideological purpose: it highlights that the consecration, the granting of the tensa, and the associated honors were decreed by the Senate in accordance with traditional republican constitutional forms. The lettering is executed in classic imperial capitals with neat, balanced letterforms characteristic of the Flavian mint at Rome.

Typology and Chronological Placement

In the revised framework of Roman Imperial Coinage established by I. A. Carradice and T. V. Buttrey, this issue is catalogued under Titus as number 361 in RIC Volume II, Part 1 (second edition). The consecration series for Vespasian comprises several parallel reverse designs struck across silver and gold denominations, including types featuring a column surmounted by a statue, an altar, an eagle, and a vacant curule chair beneath a wreath. Within this typology, the tensa type occupies a unique position by directly referencing the public liturgical honors enacted in the city of Rome. The chronological boundaries of the type are tightly defined between AD 80 and the conclusion of Titus's reign in September AD 81. While Vespasian died in mid AD 79, the extensive consecration issues in silver carrying the full DIVVS AVGVSTVS VESPASIANVS legends without lifetime consular numbers gathered momentum primarily during AD 80. The issue terminated upon the accession of Domitian in September AD 81, who promptly initiated his own consecration emissions for both his father and his newly deceased brother Titus, utilizing distinct reverse designs and legend structures.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Survival

As regular issues of the Rome mint, specimens of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361 circulated widely across the Roman provinces. Hoard data from across the western provinces, including Roman Britain, Gaul, and the German frontier, frequently demonstrate that Flavian consecration denarii entered general military pay streams and civic trade networks alongside ordinary circulating coinage of Vespasian, Titus, and Domitian. Because the Flavian silver standard remained relatively stable until Domitian's brief upward reform in AD 82 and subsequent readjustment in AD 85, coins of this type experienced active circulation for several decades. They frequently appear in early-to-mid second century hoards alongside Trajanic and Hadrianic issues, often displaying moderate to heavy wear consistent with prolonged usage before deposition. Massive second-century melting and recoining campaigns, particularly under Trajan, gradually reduced the surviving volume of first-century denarii. Today, the type is well-documented in major public museum collections and archaeological surveys, remaining an indispensable reference point for the study of imperial consecration iconography.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. II: Vespasian to Domitian. pp. 245-246, nos. 119-122
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 361. ric.2_1(2).tit.361
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. II, Part 1: From AD 69 to 96 (Vespasian to Domitian). p. 219, no. 361