Preview
Creation Date
92 C.E.
Geography
Minted at Rome
Culture
Roman
Medium
Silver
Dimensions
Diameter: 19.17 mm
Thickness: 1.87 mm
Weight: 3.14 g
Die Axis: 12
Credit Line
Bequest of David P. Harris ('46), 2020
Accession Number
2020.454.5
Signatures, Inscriptions, and Markings
Obverse Legend
IMP CAES DOMIT [AVG GERM P] M TR P XI. Brackets indicate that parts of the titulature are not clearly visible due to how the coin was struck.
IMP refers to one of the emperor’s many titles, imperator, which is related to his role as head of the military. CAES DOMIT AVG GERM is a series of abbreviations of the emperor’s name: Caesar Domitianus Augustus Germanicus. Germanicus was a title voted to him by the Senate to honor his campaigns against the Dacians. P M is an abbreviation for pontifex maximus, the highest priestly office in Rome.
TR P XI is an abbreviation for tribunicia potestate XI, which indicates that at the time of this coin’s minting, Domitian was holding tribunician powers for the eleventh time. Tribunician power refers to the privileges historically granted to the tribune of the plebs, including inviolability while in office. Emperors were granted this power by the Senate, and it had to be renewed yearly; this policy of yearly renewal helps to date this coin more precisely.
Reverse Legend
IMP XXI COS XVI CENS P P P.
Like the obverse, the legend here refers to Domitian’s titles. IMP XXI is shorthand for imperator XXI, meaning Domitian is imperator for the 21st time. COS XVI is shorthand for consul XVI, meaning Domitian is consul for the 16th time. In Rome consuls were in theory elected yearly, two at a time. Some emperors were consul every year while others ceded the power to other elite Romans, with the emperor often choosing at least one consul themselves. Domitian had his first consulship during his father’s reign.
CENS P is shorthand for censor perpetuus (“censor forever”), an office with a variety of duties: conducting the census, revising the membership of the Senate, overseeing the leasing of public property, and more. P P stands for pater patriae, “father of the fatherland,” a title commonly given to emperors.
References
RIC II 12 Domitian 733
Description
Domitian was Roman emperor from 81 C.E. until his assassination in 96 C.E. He was the third and final emperor of the Flavian dynasty, which began with his father Vespasian in 69 after a tumultuous civil war, dubbed the “Year of Four Emperors.” Domitian’s reign is narrated by the historians Suetonius, Tacitus, and Cassius Dio. Reception of his reign is extremely negative as a result of his infamous “reign of terror” in which he supposedly executed many senators in the last years of his reign.
This coin belongs to the “Third Period” (85-96) of Domitian’s coinage, and thus has a slightly higher silver content than coinage from the earlier periods of his reign. During this time, however, there was a reduction in the weight of the silver denarius (Carradice 1983). This fluctuation in silver content and weight is indicative of economic struggle (Carradice 2012).
Like almost all imperial Roman coinage, the obverse depicts a bust of the emperor, in this case Domitian. He faces right and appears nude except for a band of laurel leaves around his head. The reverse depicts the goddess Minerva, Domitian’s personal patron. She stands facing left, holding a spear in her right hand, left hand on her hip.
Minerva (often associated with the Greek Athena, although not a perfect match) was Domitian’s patron goddess. Throughout the course of Domitian’s reign, four variations of Minerva were minted consistently on silver coinage from 84 until his death in 96. The first type shows Minerva advancing right; in the second type, she also advances right, but is depicted standing on a ship. These two types represent Minerva’s association with the Roman army and navy. Our particular coin is the third type, the so-called “peaceful” version of Minerva. The fourth type shows Minerva holding a thunderbolt, representing her role as the daughter of Jupiter and his vice regent. The consistency of these four types – and the fact that three of them were discontinued after Domitian’s negatively-received reign – indicates that the emperor was heavily associated with this goddess. Poets at the time (i.e. Statius and Martial) also indicate this special relationship.
Because these Minerva types were minted yearly, it may initially seem difficult to date them. However, this coin can be dated precisely to 92 because of Domitian’s titles. While he held the title of consul XVI from the years of 92 to 94, and imperator XXI from 92 until his death, it is only in the year 92 that he held both of those titles along with tribunician powers for the 11th time.
This coin was not struck perfectly, and parts of the titulature are not visible. Nevertheless, since this coin type was common, one can reconstruct the legend based on other existing coins. Other than this, the coin is in fairly good condition with no notable damage except for a small nick underneath Minerva’s feet on the reverse and underneath the C in “CAES” on the obverse. All around the coin, the edges are slightly worn.
Bibliography
Brennan, T. Corey. 2017. “Tribunicia Potestas.” Oxford Classical Dictionary.
Buttrey, T. V. 1975. “Domitian’s Perpetual Censorship and the Numismatic Evidence.” The Classical Journal 71: 26-34.
Carradice, Ian. 1982. “Coins, Monuments, and Literature: Some Important Sestertii of Domitian.” Proceedings of the 9th International Congress of Numismatics 1: 371-383.
Carradice, Ian. 1983. Coinage and Finances in the Reign of Domitian. Oxford, England: B.A.R.
Carradice, Ian. 2012. “Flavian Coinage.” In William E. Metcalf (ed.), The Oxford Handbook of Greek and Roman Coinage. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 375-390.
Carradice, Ian and T. V. Buttrey. 2007. The Roman Imperial Coinage: Vol. II, Part 1: Vespasian to Hadrian. 2nd fully revised edition. London, England: Spink.
Derow, Peter Sidney. 2015. “Censor.” Oxford Classical Dictionary.
Morawiecki, Leslaw. 1977. “The Symbolism of Minerva on the Coins of Domitianus.” Klio 59: 185-193.
Sara Landon ’24 (for CLAS 393: Roman Numismatics with Prof. Rebecca Deitsch)