Trajan Silver Denarius, RIC II Trajan 337

Monetary and Historical Context

The emission catalogued as RIC II Trajan 337 was struck during the final phase of Trajan's reign, a period characterized by major military campaigns in the East against Parthia and Armenia. In the autumn of AD 114, the Roman Senate formally granted Trajan the title Optimus, a designation the emperor soon integrated into his official numismatic nomenclature. The appearance of this title on denarii signals a precise chronological baseline for issues carrying the formula IMP CAES NER TRAIANO OPTIMO AVG GER DAC. Economically, the denarius stood as the backbone of Roman imperial silver currency. During Trajan's principate, especially following the conquest of Dacia and the influx of Dacian bullion, the Roman state carried out significant reminting operations. Older pre-Neronian and worn republican silver coins were systematically withdrawn from circulation and melted down, as observed in hoards across the Mediterranean. While earlier Dacian spoils briefly bolstered treasury reserves, the sustained logistic requirements of the Parthian campaign necessitated massive and continuous silver production. The denarius of this period preserved the reduced post-Neronian weight standard, generally struck at roughly three grams of silver alloyed with approximately twenty percent copper, maintaining a dependable purchasing power for state disbursements, administrative salaries, and military pay.

Production and Mints

All standard denarii of the type RIC II Trajan 337 were produced at the central imperial mint of Rome. Although some provincial and branch mints in the East struck regional cistophori, drachms, or tridrachms during the Parthian expedition, the vast bulk of high-standard imperial denarii remained concentrated in the capital city. The mint at Rome operated on a sophisticated administrative model divided into distinct officinae or workshops, each responsible for engraving dies, casting flans, and striking coins under the supervision of equestrian procurators. Flan preparation for denarii involved casting measured blanks in spherical or flattened molds, followed by striking between hand-held engraved bronze or iron dies. Die alignment for Rome during this era was generally regular, commonly adhering to a six o'clock or twelve o'clock orientation. The average weight of Trajanic denarii in this group ranges between 3.10 and 3.40 grams, with typical diameters hovering between 18 and 20 millimeters. Technical examination of dies from this period reveals high artisan discipline: the portraiture and reverse figures were carved with meticulous clarity, ensuring the uniform transmission of imperial propaganda across millions of struck pieces.

Obverse Design and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC II Trajan 337 features a mature portrait of Trajan facing right. In this particular typological entry, the bust is described as laureate and draped, viewed from the side or slightly from behind, showing the imperial mantle gathered over the shoulder. Trajan's numismatic portraiture during this terminal phase reflects the fully developed 'decennalia' and late dynastic realistic style. His facial features are rendered with broad planes, a prominent aquiline nose, a determined jawline, and straight hair combed forward onto the forehead in the characteristic Julio-Claudian and adoptive tradition. The laurel wreath encircles the head with ribbons falling neatly onto the neck, symbolizing perpetual military victory and triumph. The presence of drapery softens the severe military austerity seen on bare-necked heroic busts of earlier years, reinforcing the emperor's civic dignity as civil magistrate and commander-in-chief. Die engravers captured the aging emperor's countenance while balancing naturalistic signs of maturity with idealized stoicism, creating an unmistakable imperial likeness recognizable throughout the empire.

Reverse Iconography

The reverse of the coin illustrates Mars, the Roman god of war and mythical progenitor of the Roman people, in dynamic movement. Mars is depicted helmeted and muscular, naked except for a military cloak (chlamys) fluttering about his shoulders or hips. He strides vigorously toward the right, carrying a transverse spear in his right hand and bearing a military trophy (tropaeum) upright or angled over his left shoulder. The trophy consists of captured enemy armor, including a cuirass, helmet, and greaves mounted on a wooden frame, evoking the tangible spoils of conquered barbarian and eastern armies. This representation of Mars Gradivus (the advancing Mars) carries direct ideological resonance with the ongoing Parthian hostilities. Rather than a static, peaceful guardian, the deity is shown actively taking the field on behalf of Rome, sanctifying the aggressive expansionism and preemptive campaigns undertaken on the Mesopotamian frontier. The dynamic posture conveys speed, divine backing, and inevitable Roman dominance, reassuring the citizenry and the military of celestial favor.

Inscriptions and Epigraphy

The epigraphy of RIC II Trajan 337 is split between a lengthy obverse honorific address and a reverse enumeration of imperial offices. The obverse legend reads IMP CAES NER TRAIANO OPTIMO AVG GER DAC, translating as 'Imperator Caesar Nerva Trajan, the Best Augustus, conqueror of the Germans, conqueror of the Dacians.' This legend is set in the dative case (TRAIANO OPTIMO), indicating an honorific dedication to the emperor, reflecting the formal senatorial vote conferring the title Optimus. The reverse legend completes the imperial titulature: P M TR P COS VI P P S P Q R, which abbreviates 'Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate, Consul sextum, Pater Patriae, Senatus Populusque Romanus' ('High Priest, holding Tribunician Power, Consul for the sixth time, Father of the Fatherland; the Senate and the Roman People'). Notably, this legend specifies Trajan's sixth consulship, entered on January 1, AD 112, which he held for the remainder of his life without renewing. The prominent inclusion of S P Q R on the reverse underscores constitutional harmony between the Senate, the citizen body, and the princeps, presenting Trajan's martial triumphs as collective achievements of the Roman state.

Typology and Chronological Placement

In the fundamental framework of Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC), this type is catalogued as RIC II 337. Modern numismatic research, particularly the definitive corpus of Trajan's coinage by Bernhard Woytek (Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus), places this issue within the emission sequence struck between AD 114 and late 116. The terminus post quem is securely established by the introduction of the title OPTIMVS on Rome's silver coinage in late summer or autumn of AD 114. The terminus ante quem for this precise legend configuration is framed by the subsequent addition of PARTHICVS to Trajan's official titles in the winter of AD 115/116, which prompted a revision of coin legends to incorporate the new eastern triumph. RIC II 337 belongs to a thematic series of denarii pairing the Optimus obverse with military deities, including Virtus and Mars in varying stances. Minor die variations exist within the type, primarily concerning the exact disposition of the drapery on the obverse bust or the angle of the trophy on Mars's shoulder, reflecting the output of multiple engravers working simultaneously across different workshop lines.

Circulation and Hoard Evidence

Denarii of Trajan, including RIC II Trajan 337, circulated extensively throughout the Roman world and well beyond its imperial frontiers. Because Trajan's monetary reform retired millions of pre-Neronian silver coins, the late issues of his reign formed a substantial portion of the silver pool available during the Antonine and Severan periods. Hoard studies from Britannia, the Rhine and Danube frontiers, and the eastern provinces demonstrate that Trajanic denarii remained active in everyday market transactions for more than a century after their minting, frequently appearing in worn condition in hoards deposited during the crises of the mid-third century AD. Furthermore, substantial quantities of these denarii crossed imperial borders through commercial trade, diplomatic subsidies, and auxiliary troop movements, appearing repeatedly in Free Germany, Scandinavia, and Sarmatian territories. The durability of the silver alloy and the universally respected authority of the Rome mint ensured that types depicting Mars with trophy circulated widely as trusted bullion and reliable everyday coin.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. Trajan, nos. 536-540
2. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II: Vespasian to Hadrian. p. 268, no. 337
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II Trajan 337. ric.2.tr.337
4. Die Reichsprägung des Kaisers Traianus (98-117). Moneta Imperii Romani 14, type 522