Domitian Denarius, RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 267

Monetary Context and Imperial Policy

The monetary system under the Flavian dynasty was rooted in the structural reforms introduced under Nero in AD 64, which established the silver denarius at an official weight standard of 1/96th of a Roman pound, or approximately 3.41 grams theoretically, with an average silver purity ranging between eighty and eighty-five percent. When Vespasian consolidated power following the civil conflicts of AD 69, stabilizing the imperial economy required massive reminting campaigns to satisfy fiscal demands across the provinces and replenish depleted state treasuries. Following the death of Vespasian in AD 79, his elder son Titus assumed the position of Augustus and maintained fiscal equilibrium while facing unforeseen domestic calamities, including the eruption of Mount Vesuvius and the devastating fire in Rome in AD 80. Under Titus, imperial silver minting continued to serve both practical fiscal functions and crucial ideological objectives. The striking of silver coinage in the name of the junior prince Domitian reaffirmed Flavian dynastic solidarity. By publicly associating Domitian with traditional aristocratic magistracies and juvenile leadership titles, imperial mint magistrates provided the Roman public and legionary forces with clear evidence of continuity. Denarii struck under this authority fulfilled military pay disbursements, grain purchases, and administrative outlays while simultaneously propagating dynastic stability.

Production Standards and Mint Operation

The second edition of Roman Imperial Coinage Volume II firmly places this type at the imperial mint of Rome. By the reign of Titus, silver production was concentrated almost exclusively at the capital, where highly specialized engravers, blank casters, and moneyers operated under the administrative oversight of the imperial treasury. Silver flans were cast in stepped molds, heated, and struck by hand between upper and lower iron dies. Metallurgical analyses of Flavian silver issues conducted by modern scholars indicate that denarii struck during Titus's reign maintained consistent fineness, typically containing approximately eighty percent silver alloyed with copper for durability. Standard denarii of this type exhibit typical weights centered between 3.10 and 3.45 grams, with die diameters consistently measuring eighteen to nineteen millimeters. The alignment of obverse and reverse dies was predominantly oriented at six o'clock or twelve o'clock, reflecting the disciplined workshop practices of the urban mint. The high stylistic quality of the lettering and portraiture demonstrates that senior master engravers at Rome prepared the dies for Domitian's princely series alongside the primary Augustus issues of Titus.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 267 features the head of Domitian, facing right and wearing a laurel wreath. The portrait reflects the established Flavian iconographic tradition, which combined naturalistic verism with heroic imperial traits. Domitian is depicted with a strong jawline, hooked nose, receding hairline partially masked by the laurel wreath, and a fleshy neck characteristic of Vespasian's lineage. The laurel wreath functions as an explicit emblem of imperial victory and religious sacrosanctity, tied to Apollo and the triumph of the Flavian house. Unlike later portraits from his sole reign as Augustus, which adopted an increasingly idealized and regal bearing, portraits struck under Titus present Domitian with modest, youthful severity. Die cutters rendered individual locks of hair tied at the nape with ribbon ends fluttering downward, achieving a balanced compositional tension between the circular field and the encircling imperial inscription.

Reverse Type and Symbolism

The reverse design shows a goat standing facing left, surrounded by a complete circular laurel wreath. In classical iconography, the goat carries rich mythological and political resonance. It is frequently associated with the infant Jupiter on Mount Ida, who was nursed by the divine goat Amalthea. By invoking this pastoral and divine upbringing, Flavian court artists highlighted the destined sovereignty of the imperial heir under the special protection of Jupiter. Moreover, the goat within a wreath echoes early Augustan numismatic imagery, subtly linking the Flavian restoration of peace and civic renewal to the golden age ushered in by the first emperor. The surrounding laurel wreath underscores themes of victory, eternal fertility, and civic protection. The naturalistic posture of the goat, often rendered with curved horns, a short raised tail, and finely engraved fleece, stands isolated in the center, giving the composition exceptional visual clarity. The juxtaposition of the pastoral animal with the martial laurel wreath encapsulates the dual Flavian promises of rural abundance and military security under a unified dynastic line.

Inscriptional Evidence and Titulature

The obverse legend reads CAESAR DIVI F DOMITIANVS COS VII, running clockwise from the lower left. In this formula, CAESAR designates Domitian's dynastic status as an imperial prince, while DIVI F (Divi Filius, son of the deified) asserts his direct descent from the deified Vespasian, who was consecrated by the Senate in late AD 79. The consular title COS VII securely establishes that Domitian was serving his seventh consulship, an ordinary magistracy entered on January 1, AD 80 alongside Titus as his consular colleague. The reverse legend carries the concise title PRINCEPS IVVENTVTIS, rendered along the outer perimeter enclosing the laurel wreath. The title of Princeps Iuventutis (Leader of the Youth) originated in the Augustan period when Gaius and Lucius Caesar were designated leaders of the equestrian order. Under the Flavians, the title remained the premier designation for the designated heir, affirming Domitian's military and civil seniority over Roman youth and reinforcing his status as heir apparent to the imperial throne.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the original 1926 classification of Roman Imperial Coinage Volume II by Harold Mattingly and Edward Sydenham, Domitian's issues under Titus were arranged within broad consular groups. The revised second edition of RIC II, Part 1, edited by I. A. Carradice and T. V. Buttrey in 2007, refined the Flavian sequence through comprehensive die links, hoard compositions, and consular chronologies. Catalogue number 267 is dated specifically between AD 80 and the sudden death of Titus in September AD 81. The seventh consulship of Domitian began in AD 80 and remained his official consular number throughout AD 81, as he did not assume an eighth consulship until AD 82 after becoming Augustus. Consequently, the legend CAESAR DIVI F DOMITIANVS COS VII represents the primary obverse reading for Domitian's denarii throughout the entire final phase of Titus's reign. RIC 267 forms a coherent thematic pair with parallel denarii featuring other princely reverse types, such as the curule chair, helmet on a draped table, and altar, all struck in substantial quantities to define the imperial succession.

Circulation, Hoards, and Archaeological Context

Denarii of type RIC 267 entered circulation across the Roman Empire and traveled extensively through legionary pay distribution and private trade. Because the Flavian silver standard remained reliable throughout the late first century, issues of Titus and Domitian circulated freely alongside earlier Vespasianic and Neronian coinage. Archaeological evidence from major hoard finds, such as the Reka Devnia hoard in Moesia Inferior and numerous hoards from Roman Britain, Gaul, and the German frontier, shows that these silver denarii remained in active commercial use for generations. Due to Trajan's subsequent recall of pre-Neronian coin types in the early second century, post-reform denarii from the Flavian dynasty continued to form the backbone of the empire's circulating silver pool well into the Antonine period. Many recovered specimens show moderate to heavy wear consistent with several decades of continuous circulation before being deposited in emergency savings hoards during the Marcomannic Wars or the third-century military crises.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. II: Vespasian to Domitian. pp. 242-243
2. The Metallurgy of Roman Silver Coinage: From the Reform of Nero to the Reform of Trajan. pp. 235-260
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Titus 267. ric.2_1(2).tit.267
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. II, Part 1: From Vespasian to Domitian (AD 69-96). p. 215, no. 267