Trajan Bronze As, RIC II Trajan 577 (as)

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

During the middle reign of Trajan, the Roman monetary system remained anchored by the Augustan bi-metallic and token-coinage standard. Within this hierarchy, the copper or bronze as represented one-fourth of a brass sestertius and one-sixteenth of a silver denarius. Base-metal denominations such as the as supplied the vital medium for local market transactions, minor military payouts, and daily retail commerce across Italy and the western provinces. While imperial aurei and denarii mediated grand fiscal movements, taxation, and state accounting, aes coinage circulated intimately among everyday citizens. The production of the as under Trajan maintained strict fiscal oversight, underscored by the pervasive senatorial mark S C (Senatus Consulto). Although the Senate had long ceased to exercise genuine independent monetary authority, retaining S C on aes coinage preserved constitutional continuity. By striking sophisticated architectural and ideological types on base-metal denominations like the as, the imperial administration ensured that public messaging reached the widest possible socioeconomic audience.

Production Standards and Minting at Rome

All regular bronze and orichalcum coinage bearing the comprehensive SPQR OPTIMO PRINCIPI formula was produced exclusively at the central imperial mint in Rome. Mint operations under Trajan operated at massive scale, fueled by the monumental influx of bullion and resources following the annexation of Dacia in AD 106. The as was typically struck on cast copper or low-alloy bronze flans, distinguishing it from the brass (orichalcum) employed for sestertii and dupondii. Average weights for Trajanic asses tended to cluster between 9.5 and 11.5 grams, with typical diameters spanning 26 to 28 millimeters, although flan thickness and strike irregularity yielded considerable individual variance. Die production was managed by skilled engravers who maintained high artistic consistency across imperial portraits and intricate multi-figure reverse dies. The physical striking employed heavy hinged or handheld dies, with medal or coin alignment varying across production runs.

Obverse Iconography and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC II Trajan 577 (as) presents a mature, idealized portrait of Trajan facing right. The Emperor is depicted with a laurel wreath bound at the occiput with fluttering ties, accompanied by drapery gathered at the base of the neck or over the far shoulder. This portrait style exemplifies the established Optimus Princeps physiognomic schema, abandoning the severe verism of Flavian models in favor of a composed, civic dignity characterized by straight-cut hair, a firm jawline, and a calm, focused gaze. The laurel wreath emphasizes triumphant military virtue, while the drapery adds civil solemnity. Engravers at the Rome mint cut these portrait dies with deep relief and fine linear detailing, balancing imperial majesty with an approachable visual persona suited to the princeps.

Reverse Architectural Design and Symbolism

The reverse features an impressive octastyle temple set on a raised podium, rendered in fine perspective. Within the central intercolumniation sits an enthroned statue of Jupiter, holding a sceptre and thunderbolt. The temple pediment and architrave are decorated with relief figures depicting Jupiter amidst attending deities. The apex of the roof is surmounted by a central heroic figure brandishing a spear, flanked at the roof corners by winged Victories bearing trophies or palms. Scholars have long debated the precise architectural identity of this monument. While earlier antiquarians connected the structure to the restored Capitoline Temple of Jupiter Optimus Maximus, which had been rebuilt under the Flavians, alternative proposals identify it as the Temple of Jupiter Victor or a specialized shrine dedicated to Jupiter Conservator in gratitude for Trajan's military survival and success in Dacia. Regardless of the exact topography, the visual program explicitly identifies Jupiter as the ultimate guarantor and protector of the Emperor's victorious authority.

Epigraphic Formulations and Imperial Titulature

The epigraphy of RIC II Trajan 577 (as) encapsulates the peak of Trajanic public titling. The obverse legend reads IMP CAES NERVAE TRAIANO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS V P P, expanding to Imperatori Caesari Nervae Traiano Augusto Germanico Dacico, Pontifici Maximo, Tribunicia Potestate, Consuli Quintum, Patri Patriae. This sequence acknowledges Trajan's adoption by Nerva, his prestigious military cognomina Germanicus and Dacicus, his role as chief priest, his annual tribunician authority, his fifth consulship, and his status as Father of the Country. The dative grammatical case (TRAIANO) is particularly noteworthy, framing the coin legend as a dedicatory inscription offered to the Emperor rather than a simple proclamation by him. The reverse legend, S P Q R OPTIMO PRINCIPI S C (Senatus Populusque Romanus Optimo Principi; Senatus Consulto), continues this dedicatory syntax, declaring that the Senate and the Roman people honor the Best of Princes under senatorial decree.

Typological Classification and Chronological Framework

In the standard reference framework of Harold Mattingly and Edward Sydenham (RIC II), type 577 designates the specific bronze as issue pairing the draped, laureate bust with the octastyle temple reverse within Trajan's fifth consulship. Bernhard Woytek's modern corpus, Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus (MIR 14), refines this chronology based on portrait development and hoard distributions, placing the issue within the expansive post-Dacian coin period between AD 103 and 111. Because Trajan entered his fifth consulship on January 1, AD 103, and did not assume his sixth until AD 112, coins bearing COS V span nearly a decade of continuous minting. Parallel dies of this temple type were simultaneously prepared for sestertii (such as RIC 575 and 576) and dupondii (such as RIC 578), demonstrating a coordinated thematic emission across all base-metal denominations rather than an isolated striking.

Circulation Patterns and Monetary Survival

Asses of Trajan were among the most heavily utilized small-change denominations of the second century AD. Excavation contexts across Roman Britain, the Rhine-Danube limes, Gaul, and the Mediterranean basin demonstrate that these base-metal pieces remained in active circulation for decades, frequently passing through commerce well into the Antonine and Severan eras. Because of this sustained utilitarian circulation, surviving specimens of RIC II 577 (as) commonly display moderate to heavy wear, smoothing of fine architectural relief, and varied patination patterns typical of river, urban, or agricultural deposits. Well-preserved specimens showing sharp pedimental details and clear lettering are relatively scarce, reflecting the intense daily transactions to which Roman copper coinage was routinely subjected.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. pp. 200-205
2. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II: Vespasian to Hadrian. pp. 284-285, no. 577
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II Trajan 577 (as). ric.2.tr.577_as
4. Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus (98-117) (MIR 14). Moneta Imperii Romani Band 14