Trajan Orichalcum Sestertius RIC II Trajan 381

Monetary and Political Context

Upon succeeding Nerva in late January of AD 98, Trajan inherited a monetary system anchored by the reforms of the early empire and refined under the Flavian dynasty. The sestertius remained the premier large copper-alloy denomination of Roman daily commerce and state propaganda. Valued at one-fourth of a silver denarius or four copper asses, the sestertius offered a wide flan ideally suited for transmitting complex political messages directly to the population of Italy and the western provinces. Trajan chose to inaugurate his reign with substantial imperial handouts known as congiaria, which served to cement his legitimacy and honor traditional patronal expectations. RIC II Trajan 381 commemorates this primary distribution (congiarium primum), promising material security and civic harmony. By using the extensive canvas of the brass sestertius, the imperial administration publicized the generous fiscal relationship between the new princeps and the civilian populace of the capital.

Production and Mint Organization

All specimens of RIC II Trajan 381 were manufactured at the principal imperial mint located in Rome. Production of senatorial bronze denominations, traditionally denoted by the formula S C (Senatus Consulto), operated under high artistic and administrative supervision in the imperial capital. The coin was struck from orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc alloy favored for sestertii and dupondii due to its bright appearance and metallurgical durability. Dies were hand-engraved with fine detail to accommodate the dense, narrative architecture of the reverse scene. Target weights conformed to the standard Roman imperial sestertius norm of the late first century AD, typically clustering between 25 and 28 grams with diameters spanning approximately 32 to 35 millimeters. Precise control over metal blanks ensured uniform token value, even though the sestertius circulated as a fiduciary bronze coin pegged to the gold and silver coinages.

Obverse Design and Portraiture

The obverse features a right-facing portrait of Trajan crowned with a laurel wreath, terminating with the aegis on his shoulder. The aegis, associated with Jupiter and Minerva, functioned as a potent divine attribute signifying heavenly protection and military invincibility. In these early portrait types, die cutters captured a dignified image of the new ruler, blending realistic features such as his straight brow and firm jawline with classicizing imperial modesty. The portraiture is notably restrained compared to later grandiose portraits of the Dacian campaigns, reflecting the initial period of his reign when the administration emphasized continuity, civic duty, and the memory of Nerva.

Reverse Iconography and Composition

The reverse of RIC II Trajan 381 presents an intricate multi-figure composition illustrating the imperial congiarium. Trajan sits enthroned upon a curule chair atop an elevated platform or suggestum, positioned toward the left. Steps ascend to the platform from behind, where a citizen clad in a toga ascends to receive the imperial bounty. A lower official or distributor sits beneath the dais to oversee the logistics of the handout. Behind Trajan stand the personification of Libertas and a ceremonial tripod, invoking both civil liberty and religious piety. The balance of the architecture, imperial figures, and citizen elements reflects classical Roman compositional techniques, transforming an act of administrative welfare into a stately tableau of imperial benevolence and constitutional order.

Inscriptions and Epigraphy

The obverse legend reads IMP CAES NERVA TRAIAN AVG GERM P M TR P, presenting the initial imperial formula: Imperator Caesar Nerva Traianus Augustus Germanicus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate. This sequence establishes his dynastic link through adoption by Nerva, his military distinction on the Rhine frontier earning the cognomen Germanicus, and his core magistracies. The reverse legend is inscribed COS II P P CONG P R S C, standing for Consul II, Pater Patriae, Congiarium Populo Romano, Senatus Consulto. The recording of Trajan's second consulship fixes the type strictly to the early regnal years AD 98 and 99, while the abbreviation CONG P R explicitly identifies the scene as the distribution of grain or cash gifts to the Roman people, sanctioned by the authority of the Senate.

Typology and Chronological Classification

RIC II Trajan 381 is securely catalogued to the very beginning of Trajan's reign, dating between AD 98 and AD 99. The chronological bracket is strictly defined by the combination of COS II, which Trajan assumed on January 1, AD 98, and held until entering his third consulship (COS III) on January 1, AD 100. Mattingly's Roman Imperial Coinage placed this issue under the early Rome aes strikings of Group I. Modern studies, notably Bernhard Woytek's Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus (MIR 14), integrate this issue into the initial congiarium emissions (Woytek 64), distinguishing subtle die varieties based on drapery, bust styles, and the placement of the platform steps. Unlike later congiarium issues that explicitly enumerate subsequent distributions (such as CONG II or CONG III), this initial emission references the institution without an ordinal numeral, denoting the premiere donative.

Circulation and Historical Significance

Because sestertii possessed considerable purchasing power, they circulated widely through market hubs across Italy, the Danubian frontiers, Gaul, and the western provinces. Specimens of RIC II Trajan 381 experienced prolonged active use, as early second-century aes coinage often circulated for decades until the Antonine and Severan eras. Wear patterns on surviving examples frequently show smoothing on the elevated elements of the reverse figures and obverse high points. Historically, this type stands out as one of the most visual assertions of the Nerva-Antonine social contract, using high-relief civic art to assure the Roman plebs that the military commander from Italica would honor Rome's time-tested civic distributions and respect the senatorial order.

References

1. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II: Vespasian to Hadrian. p. 273, no. 381
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II Trajan 381. ric.2.tr.381
3. Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus (98-117). Moneta Imperii Romani 14, pp. 195-200