Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XII 29 September 2016
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Caracalla AV Aureus. Laodicea ad Mare, AD 200. ANTONINVS AVGVSTVS, laureate and draped bust right / P MAX TR P III, Roma seated to left on round shield, holding Victory in her right hand and a reversed spear with her left. Biaggi 1187; BMC p. 295, 715; Calicó 2703; C. 182; RIC 342a; Sear 6727. 7.22g, 20mm, 11h.
Extremely Fine. Very Rare.
A charming early portrait of Caracalla, struck two years after his elevation to the rank of Augustus, the young emperor is seen here as a vision of youth. If one looks at the progression of the portraits throughout his reign, they become more sinister looking, starting off youthful and moving towards a more intense face with furrowed brow. Those later portrayals appear to have been highly accurate, and are confirmed by the historical sources, which are not kind to him. They universally describe him as an angry and savage character who was not well liked.
Caracalla reigned jointly with his father Septimius Severus until the latter's death in AD 211 and subsequently shared a joint rule with his brother Geta. Despite the strong bond between their parents and Septimius' attempt to forge a strong and close-knit imperial family, Caracalla and Geta were irretrievably at odds and incapable of working together. Contrary to the picture of the imperial family presented to the outside world, fragments of which can be seen on the coinage of Septimius, which shows a united family sharing the responsibilities of rule, the truth of the matter was that Julia Domna spent much of her time mediating in her sons' conflicts – a prescient warning of the future.
The depiction of Roma on the reverse of this rare aureus is consistent with other issues from the third century which were heavy with military depictions and religious themes, and it is a fittingly patriotic image with which to associate the young co-emperor. The implication of this type, struck while Caracalla was still only twelve, is that he is being carefully prepared by his father to one day take over the rule of the empire.
Laodicea ad Mare, the mint of this particular coin, had pledged its allegiance to Septimius during the civil war, and thus the town was granted titles and privileges, including the establishment of a provincial mint striking gold and silver, of which the present piece is a fine example. It is also quite possible, given the output of gold at Laodicea in 198-202, that the gold used in the minting of this and other coins was sourced from the spoils of war Septimius collected in the course of his victorious Parthian campaign.
Extremely Fine. Very Rare.
A charming early portrait of Caracalla, struck two years after his elevation to the rank of Augustus, the young emperor is seen here as a vision of youth. If one looks at the progression of the portraits throughout his reign, they become more sinister looking, starting off youthful and moving towards a more intense face with furrowed brow. Those later portrayals appear to have been highly accurate, and are confirmed by the historical sources, which are not kind to him. They universally describe him as an angry and savage character who was not well liked.
Caracalla reigned jointly with his father Septimius Severus until the latter's death in AD 211 and subsequently shared a joint rule with his brother Geta. Despite the strong bond between their parents and Septimius' attempt to forge a strong and close-knit imperial family, Caracalla and Geta were irretrievably at odds and incapable of working together. Contrary to the picture of the imperial family presented to the outside world, fragments of which can be seen on the coinage of Septimius, which shows a united family sharing the responsibilities of rule, the truth of the matter was that Julia Domna spent much of her time mediating in her sons' conflicts – a prescient warning of the future.
The depiction of Roma on the reverse of this rare aureus is consistent with other issues from the third century which were heavy with military depictions and religious themes, and it is a fittingly patriotic image with which to associate the young co-emperor. The implication of this type, struck while Caracalla was still only twelve, is that he is being carefully prepared by his father to one day take over the rule of the empire.
Laodicea ad Mare, the mint of this particular coin, had pledged its allegiance to Septimius during the civil war, and thus the town was granted titles and privileges, including the establishment of a provincial mint striking gold and silver, of which the present piece is a fine example. It is also quite possible, given the output of gold at Laodicea in 198-202, that the gold used in the minting of this and other coins was sourced from the spoils of war Septimius collected in the course of his victorious Parthian campaign.