Trajan Bronze Dupondius RIC II Trajan 653

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

Under the monetary system established during the early Principate and maintained through the second century AD, the dupondius was a core middle-value base-metal denomination. Valued at two asses, half a sestertius, or one-eighth of a silver denarius, it served vital transactional roles in daily retail commerce, market pricing, and state distributions across the empire. The denomination was traditionally manufactured from orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc alloy that contrasted with the pure red copper used for the contemporary as. Because wear and patina could obscure alloy distinctions, imperial mint practice regularly distinguished the dupondius by depicting the emperor wearing a radiate crown, a radiant solar attribute that stood in contrast to the laureate wreath worn on contemporary asses and sestertii. RIC II Trajan 653 embodies these standard denominational conventions, acting as a middle-tier token denomination struck under state authority and supported by the fiduciary guarantees of the imperial monetary system.

Production and Mint Organization

Struck exclusively at the imperial mint of Rome, RIC II Trajan 653 was produced through hot-striking between engraved iron or bronze dies. The mint at Rome operated on a sophisticated officina structure, balancing substantial output across gold, silver, and aes metals to meet the heavy logistical and financial demands of the late reign. Blanks were cast in moulds to achieve the appropriate diameter and weight standard before striking. While ideal target weights for Trajanic dupondii hovered around eleven to thirteen grams with diameters typically ranging from twenty-six to twenty-eight millimeters, individual specimens exhibit typical ancient variations in mass and flan thickness resulting from batch-weight production methods. The flans for this issue utilized orichalcum alloys, though trace metallurgical variations reflect the recycling of older bronze and brass scrap common in Roman imperial metallurgy. Engravers at Rome cut dies with high technical consistency, capturing the distinctive realism and stoic iconography characteristic of Trajan's official court style.

Obverse Iconography and Variations

The obverse design of RIC II Trajan 653 features a right-facing portrait of Trajan wearing the radiate crown, marking the coin unambiguously as a dupondius. The portraiture belongs to the emperor's final major iconographic phase, often termed the decennalia or late portrait group, characterized by a firm jawline, combed-forward hair over the forehead, a slightly hooked nose, and a mature, seasoned expression. The die cutters produced subtle compositional variations in bust drapery: while the primary type presents a bare radiate neck and shoulder, attested specimens also exhibit light drapery arranged over the far shoulder or draped across the bust. This variation reflects standard die-engraver discretion within the Rome officinae rather than distinct chronological phases. The radiate crown is rendered with sharp, tapering spikes projecting outward from the hair, reinforcing both denominational identification and subtle associations with Sol and divine vitality.

Reverse Design and Symbolism

The reverse of RIC II Trajan 653 is dedicated to Fortuna Redux, the personification of fortune charged with guiding the emperor safely home from foreign campaigns. Fortuna is portrayed as a draped female figure seated toward the left upon a low chair, her feet resting steadily on a footstool. In her right hand, she guides a ship's rudder resting upright on the ground line, symbolizing divine steering and navigational guidance through peril. In her left arm, she cradles an overflowing cornucopia, representing the peace, material abundance, and prosperity that accompanied the emperor's successful return. The design is complemented by the formulaic abbreviation S C (Senatus Consulto) positioned in the field or flanking the type, asserting the traditional senatorial sanction governing base-metal coinage at Rome. Struck during the intense military commitments in Armenia, Mesopotamia, and Parthia, this imagery directly engaged the religious and civic anxiety surrounding the absent princeps.

Epigraphy and Legend Readings

The obverse legend reads IMP CAES NER TRAIANO OPTIMO AVG GER DAC P M TR P COS VI P P, presented continuously in an unbroken or minimally segmented circular band. This comprehensive titulature identifies Trajan as Imperator, Caesar, adoptive son of Nerva, and Augustus, while integrating his victorious cognomina Germanicus and Dacicus alongside his supreme pontificate (Pontifex Maximus), his ongoing tribunician power (Tribunicia Potestate), his sixth consulship (Consul VI), and the title Pater Patriae (Father of his Country). Crucially, the legend incorporates the honorific title Optimus, conferred officially by the Senate in the autumn of AD 114, establishing an essential post quem terminus. The reverse legend is split between the perimeter and the exergue, reading SENATVS POPVLVSQVE ROMANVS around the upper rim, affirming the sovereign agency of the Senate and People of Rome. The exergue bears the specific dedication FORT RED (Fortuna Redux), supplemented by S C across the lower fields, binding religious appeal to constitutional sanction.

Typology and Chronological Placement

In the standard classification of Harold Mattingly and Edward A. Sydenham in Roman Imperial Coinage, RIC II Trajan 653 occupies a discrete place among the bronze issues of Trajan's final years, dating to AD 114 through 117. Bernhard Woytek's modern corpus of Trajan's coinage (Moneta Imperii Romani 14) situates this Fortuna Redux type within the massive emission series produced during the Parthian War period, struck alongside matching sestertii and asses bearing identical or complementary reverse themes. The introduction of the title Optimus within the obverse formula firmly dates the creation of the type to no earlier than late autumn of AD 114, when the Senate decreed the honor. The type was struck until the end of Trajan's reign in August AD 117. It forms part of a cohesive ideological program that replaced earlier regional conquest types with vows and invocations for the emperor's safe transit and successful return from the eastern frontier.

Circulation Patterns and Archaeological Context

Dupondii of Trajan formed an exceptionally durable component of the western Roman monetary pool, circulating actively for decades after their initial release. Excavation data from military forts along the Rhine and Danube frontiers, as well as urban centers in Italy, Gaul, and Hispania, demonstrate that base-metal aes denominations moved widely along state distribution channels and military pay conduits. While gold and silver were favored for long-distance transport, middle-bronze coins such as RIC II Trajan 653 supplied day-to-day liquidity in market centers, garrison vici, and provincial towns. Hoard evidence shows that Trajanic dupondii frequently remained in circulation through the Antonine and Severan eras, often exhibiting heavy surface wear before eventual loss or concealment. Countermarks from subsequent reigns are relatively infrequent on this late issue compared to Julio-Claudian bronze, reflecting the high monetary stability and consistent public confidence enjoyed by Trajan's base-metal emissions.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. pp. 219-221
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II Trajan 653. ric.2.tr.653
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II: Vespasian to Hadrian. p. 290, no. 653
4. Die Reichspragung des Kaisers Traianus (98-117) (MIR 14). MIR 14, nos. 504-506