Titus As, RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

The Flavian dynasty inherited an empire recovering from the financial and administrative dislocations of the civil wars of AD 68 to 69. Upon securing supreme authority, Vespasian initiated sweeping monetary reforms aimed at replenishing state coffers and stabilizing the imperial currency system. Within this revitalized framework, base-metal coinage played an indispensable role in daily urban transactions, retail trade, and the payment of civic duties across Rome and the western provinces. The as, struck historically in pure copper following the Augustan reform standard, functioned as a foundational fractional denomination, valued at four per sestertius and sixteen per silver denarius. The production of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038 between AD 77 and AD 78 illustrates the high volume of base-metal output generated by the Rome mint in the late 70s AD. During this period, the co-rulership of Vespasian and his elder son Titus Caesar was extensively codified on the coinage. Although imperial authority rested formally with Vespasian as Augustus, large tranches of the urban mint's fractional bronze output were dedicated to presenting Titus as the seasoned, legitimate heir to the principate.

Production Standards and Mint Attribution

The entire attested production of this catalogue type was concentrated at the primary imperial mint in Rome. By AD 77 to 78, the mint of Rome operated with advanced institutional efficiency, organizing die engravers and workshop officinae to produce vast quantities of bronze asses and sestertii. Flavian asses were manufactured on circular planchets composed predominantly of unalloyed copper, distinguishing them from the brass or orichalcum used for sestertii and dupondii. Surviving specimens of Flavian asses produced at Rome generally adhere to a theoretical weight standard clustered around 10.0 to 11.0 grams, with typical diameters ranging between 26 and 29 millimeters, although regular production variances occurred during manual striking. The dies were crafted with high naturalism and deeply cut reliefs characteristic of late Flavian engraving at Rome. Die axes for this emission were predominantly struck at an orientation of six o'clock or twelve o'clock, reflecting the disciplined mechanical controls maintained by the moneta at the imperial capital.

Obverse Portraiture and Style

The obverse of RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038 presents a right-facing portrait bust of Titus Caesar, depicted with a laurel wreath tied at the occiput with falling fillets. The portrait style adheres closely to the hallmark Flavian veristic aesthetic, emphasizing Titus's broad facial structure, firm jawline, and fleshy neck, which echoed the physical features of his father Vespasian to reinforce family resemblance and dynastic continuity. Unlike the youthful, idealized depictions of Julio-Claudian princes, Titus is rendered as a mature, hardened military commander in his late thirties. The laurel wreath serves as both a sign of victory and a marker of elevated imperial rank beneath that of the reigning Augustus. The die cutting exhibits the refined volumetric modeling typical of the central Rome workshops in the late 70s AD, surrounded by a regular, finely beaded circular border.

Reverse Iconography and Naval Symbolism

The reverse design presents the goddess Victory (Victoria) standing erect atop the prow of a war galley, oriented to the right. In her extended right hand, she holds forward a circular triumphal wreath of laurel, while her left hand cradles a palm frond angled across her shoulder. Her draped drapery billows slightly behind her, conveying both forward motion and divine permanence. Flanking the lower fields on either side of the ship's rostrum are the letters S and C, representing Senatus Consulto, the constitutional formula indicating senatorial authorization of the base-metal issue. The placement of Victory on a prow is an iconic Greco-Roman design of substantial antiquity, explicitly evoking naval supremacy and maritime pacification. While closely associated with historical victories such as Actium, the Flavian reuse of this image in AD 77 to 78 commemorated naval operations during the Jewish War, including the battle on the Sea of Galilee, as well as the broader pacification of the Mediterranean sea lanes under Flavian rule.

Epigraphy and Imperial Titles

The inscriptions on RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038 supply exact chronological boundaries and constitutional definitions for the coin. The obverse legend reads T CAESAR VESPASIANVS TR P COS VI, beginning in the lower left field and running clockwise along the rim. This formula translates to Titus Caesar Vespasianus, Tribunicia Potestate, Consul Sextum. Titus entered his sixth consulship on January 1, AD 77, holding the title into AD 78 before assuming his seventh consulship in AD 79. The inclusion of the tribunician power (TR P) highlights his role as co-regent alongside Vespasian. The reverse legend reads VICTORIA AVGVSTI, celebrating the Imperial Victory or the Victory of the Augustus, with S C placed in the field. The genitive case of AVGVSTI attributes the protective and victorious fortune directly to the imperial office, reminding the user that all military successes achieved by commanders, including Titus, ultimately derived from the supreme auspices of the emperor.

Typology and Chronological Classification

In the standard reference classification of Roman Imperial Coinage, this issue is catalogued as RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038. It corresponds chronologically to the late period of Vespasian's reign, specifically the administrative emission year of AD 77 to 78. Within the broader typological suite of this emission, the Rome mint struck a comprehensive parallel series of base-metal denominations for both Vespasian and Titus, pairing portraits of the father and son with matching reverse types, such as Victory on prow, Pax, and Aequitas. In earlier scholarship, including Harold Mattingly's first edition of RIC II, Flavian fractional bronzes were grouped with less refined workshop demarcations, but the modern revision by I. A. Carradice and T. V. Buttrey established the precise sequence of consular issues. Type 1038 is clearly distinguished from earlier asses of Titus (such as those naming him COS V in AD 76) and later emissions (naming him COS VII in AD 79) by the specific combination of COS VI and the naval Victory reverse.

Circulation Patterns and Archaeological Context

As low-value fractional currency, copper asses produced at Rome circulated extensively across the Italian peninsula and the western provinces of the Roman Empire, including Gaul, Britannia, and Hispania. Archaeological excavations and stray find records demonstrate that base-metal coins of the Flavian period enjoyed long active lifespans, frequently remaining in local markets for decades. Because asses possessed low intrinsic metal value relative to their purchasing power, they rarely crossed outside the administrative borders of the empire, instead circulating intensely within military castra, commercial vici, and urban fora. Many excavated specimens of late Flavian asses exhibit severe wear, confirming that they changed hands continuously from the late first century through the Antonine period, until significant inflation and subsequent reminting under the Severan emperors gradually withdrew older copper issues from everyday circulation.

References

1. The Metallurgy of Roman Silver and Base Metal Coinage. Chapter on Flavian Base-Metal Alloys
2. Coinage and Finances in the Reign of Domitian, AD 81-96. British Archaeological Reports, International Series 178
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 1038. Type ric.2_1(2).ves.1038
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. II, Part 1: Vespasian to Domitian (AD 69-96). Pages 137-142, no. 1038