RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 961 Silver Denarius

Monetary Context and Imperial Policy

Under the Flavian dynasty, imperial coinage was harnessed both to repair the monetary disarray following the civil wars of AD 68 to 69 and to legitimize a newly elevated family without patrician lineage. Vespasian instituted a consistent monetary policy across the empire, retaining the lighter weight standard and silver alloy established by Nero's reform of AD 64, in which the silver denarius was struck at roughly 96 coins per Roman pound (about 3.3 to 3.4 grams) at a fineness of roughly 80 to 82 percent silver. By AD 77 and AD 78, when this denarius was produced, the Flavian regime had firmly consolidated its administrative and fiscal machinery. Coin production on behalf of Vespasian's sons, Titus and Domitian, both bearing the title Caesar, occupied a substantial portion of the output of the central mint in Rome. Striking precious metal coinage in the name of Domitian served an important constitutional and dynastic objective, assuring the Roman populace, the Senate, and the legions of an orderly succession and dynastic permanence. The choice of deeply rooted republican and foundational imagery across Flavian precious metal issues during the late 70s AD reflected a calculated cultural program of renewal and restoration.

Mint Organization and Production Standards

The denarius catalogued as RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 961 was produced exclusively at the imperial mint in Rome. By the late 70s AD, the western provincial mints that had operated during the civil wars and early years of Vespasian's reign (such as Lugdunum and various Spanish and Illyrian facilities) had largely ceased regular denarius production, leaving Rome as the undisputed center of silver striking for the western empire. The mint operated with organized workshops (officinae), using engraved iron or bronze dies. Obverse dies were prepared with high-relief portraits of the young Caesar, while reverse dies displayed detailed figurative compositions. The blanks were cast in molds and hot-struck by mint workers using handheld hammers. Output followed the official Flavian standard, with surviving specimens generally clustering around 3.2 to 3.4 grams and measuring roughly 18 to 20 millimeters in diameter. While die alignment was often roughly six o'clock or twelve o'clock, variation in axis and minor flan irregularities are standard for mass-produced Flavian silver.

Obverse Iconography and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC 961 presents the head of Domitian facing right, crowned with a laurel wreath. Domitian is depicted as a young adult in his mid-twenties, reflecting his physical appearance prior to his accession as sole emperor. The portrait exhibits the distinctive stylistic hallmarks of the Roman mint during the late Flavian period, combining realistic physical features with imperial gravitas. Die engravers captured his broad forehead, straight nose, and firm jawline, balancing personal individuality with the idealized demeanor expected of an imperial prince. The laurel wreath, tied at the back of the head with its ribbon ends falling down the neck, symbolizes victory, triumph, and sacred authority. Flavian portraiture at Rome during this period avoids excessive youthful softening, instead emphasizing stability and family resemblance to his father Vespasian and brother Titus, reinforcing the cohesive visual identity of the ruling dynasty.

Reverse Iconography: The She-Wolf, Twins, and Boat

The reverse composition depicts the iconic Roman foundational legend: the she-wolf (lupa) standing right, with her head turned back and down to attend the suckling infant twins, Romulus and Remus. Below this central group, in the exergual area, sits a small boat. This mythic vignette commemorates the miraculous salvation of the infant founders of Rome, who had been abandoned in a basket on the flooded Tiber River and washed ashore at the base of the Palatine Hill, where the beast nursed them until their discovery by the shepherd Faustulus. The boat in the exergue directly evokes the riverine setting of the Tiber and the basket (or skiff) associated with their abandonment and rescue. In Flavian political visual language, reviving this classic Roman emblem was a powerful ideological statement. It proclaimed the rebirth of Rome under Flavian governance, linking the modest municipal origin of the Flavii to the sacred origins of the Eternal City. By issuing this type under Domitian, the regime cast the young prince as an heir to the heroic legacy of Romulus, promising the revitalization and enduring protection of the state.

Epigraphy and Legend Analysis

The inscriptions on RIC 961 are concise and follow traditional imperial titular abbreviations. The obverse legend reads CAESAR AVG F DOMITIANVS, running clockwise from the lower left. In this formula, CAESAR designates his rank as imperial prince; AVG F abbreviates Augusti Filius ('son of Augustus'), explicitly asserting his filial legitimacy and status as the son of Emperor Vespasian; and DOMITIANVS provides his personal cognomen. The reverse legend is positioned in the field above the lupine scene, reading COS V. This indicates Domitian's fifth consulship (Consul V), a vital chronological marker. As with standard Roman epigraphy, the lettering is composed of serifed Latin capital characters executed directly into the die face. The absence of additional titles such as Princeps Iuventutis on this specific type focuses the epigraphic emphasis purely on his consulship and his familial connection to the reigning Augustus.

Typology, Parallel Issues, and Chronological Placement

The chronological framework for RIC 961 is firmly established by Domitian's fifth consulship, which he entered on January 1, AD 77, as suffect consul, and which continued through AD 78 until he assumed his sixth consulship on January 1, AD 79. Consequently, numismatists place the production of this denarius securely within the period of AD 77 to 78. In the revised Flavian volume of Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC II, Part 1, 2007, edited by Ian Carradice and Ted Buttrey), this type is catalogued as number 961 under the Rome mint issues for Domitian Caesar. The type is closely linked to contemporary denarii struck for Vespasian and Titus at Rome, which likewise revived ancient and mythological themes, including the sow and piglets, the rostral column, and Roma seated. A parallel aureus type featuring the wolf and twins with COS V was also issued during the same emission, demonstrating that the design was part of a coordinated multi-denomination precious metal series. Minor die varieties exist in the execution of the wolf's stance, the rendering of the boat, and the exact placement of the reverse legend letters, but all adhere strictly to the same overarching typological classification.

Circulation and Archaeological Context

As a regular issue of the central imperial mint, denarii of the wolf and twins type entered active circulation throughout the western provinces, Italy, and the frontier garrisons along the Rhine and Danube. Flavian silver coins circulated heavily for decades alongside earlier post-reform issues of Nero and the civil war combatants. Because the silver content remained near 80 percent, these denarii circulated on par with contemporary Flavian issues. Many specimens in European hoards show moderate to heavy wear, indicating that they remained in commercial circulation well into the reigns of Trajan, Hadrian, and even the Antonines, when Trajan's general recoinage around AD 107 began systematically withdrawing pre-Neronian and worn early imperial silver. Hoard discoveries across Britain, Gaul, Germany, and the Danubian limes regularly record the presence of Vespasianic and Domitianic denarii from the late 70s AD, demonstrating the broad geographical integration of Roman imperial currency during this period.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume II: Vespasian to Domitian. pp. 49-51
2. Coinage and Finances in the Reign of Domitian, AD 81-96. BAR International Series 378
3. Roman Coins from the Earliest Times to the Fall of the Western Empire. pp. 110-125
4. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 1 (second edition) Vespasian 961. ric.2_1(2).ves.961
5. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II, Part 1: From AD 69 to AD 96 (Vespasian to Domitian). p. 132, no. 961