Caracalla As Caesar Denarii Additions.

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Author	Replies: 13 / Views: 1,816
Palouche Pillar of the Community Spain 2752 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 07:09 am I'm thrilled to add these recent additions to my Caracalla collection. I've been looking for a "Caesar" coin of Caracalla for a while now and jumped at the opportunity of purchasing these two types, which came up for sale from a seller I regularly buy from, the first coin being the earliest reverse type of Caracalla as "Caesar" which is .It was minted in 195-196 AD when he was around a mere 8 years old.. At this point I'll add a little bit of history just in case there are collectors out there who aren't familiar with this sweet little boys life! Ok..Caracalla was born in Lugdunum (Lyon), Gaul (France) on the 4th April 188AD to his father, the future Emperor Septimius Severus (193-211) and his mother Julia Domna (193-211). His birth name was Lucius Septimius Bassianus and at the age of 7 was renamed Marcus Aurelius Antoninus, but we all know him by his nickname of 'Caracalla'. The name derived from a Gallic hooded tunic he wore probably during the Rhine and Danube campaigns. He reigned from 198 - 217, Co-ruled with his father from 198-211 and with his younger brother Geta from 209-211 (that's another story)!. His father died in early February 211 leaving Caracalla and his brother Geta to co-rule. This didn't work out well and in late December of the same year Caracalla had his brother Geta murdered...Caracalla now continued to rule as sole Agusta for another 6 years until in April 217 whilst travelling to Carrhae in modern Turkey, he was stabbed to death by an irrate soldier named Justin Martialis. This was probably incited by Macrinus who held the position of Praetorian Prefect at the time and would become the next Emperor. In AD195/6 Caracalla was given the Imperial rank of "Caesar", he was 8 years old and 2 years later in AD198 rose to joint Augustus with his father Septimius Severus, the young boy was still only around 10 years old!..This small 2 year period makes his coinage as "Caesar" a little less common and an area I've become very interested in... Here's the first coin showing a very stern looking lad!! This is the earliest type Denarius of Caracalla as "Caesar"..Looking at this portrait I think the alarm bells should've been ringing at this point but hey it's Rome! Coin 1... Caracalla, as Caesar, 196-198 AD. AR Denarius (3.21 gm, 17mm). Rome mint. Struck 195-196 AD. Obv.: M AVR ANTONINVS CAES,(Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Caesar), bare-headed and draped bust right. Rev.: SEVERI AVG PII FIL,(To Severus, son of the pious Emperor Augustus), Lituus, Sacrificial knife (axe), Guttus, Simpulum and Aspergilum. RIC#4. gVF. Shown on the reverse are 5 sacrificial implements. I've noticed that if the implements are individually described by sellers they are quite often incorrectly named which is probably a copy and paste tipo. Here's a breakdown of what I'm seeing portrayed on the reverse... Firstly to the left is the Lituus...A curved Augurs staff which was used as a cult instrument in ancient Roman religion by Augurs to mark out a ritual space in the sky called the "Templum". The Augurs were basically priests who practiced Augury, being the interpretation of the will of the gods within the "Templum". This could encompass the flight of birds, cloud shapes and of course at night the star formations..Also anything in between! Here's a nice print showing an Auger proclaiming "They will attack from the East"...Maybe check out your Western Borders just in case!?.... Next to the Lituus is a Sacrificial knife/axe. Probably don't have to explain in too much detail what this was used for!?...........................Yeh why not?...Used for slitting the jugular of larger animals such as oxen, sheep, pigs and goats etc or simply decapitating smaller creatures such as chickens or geese in one foul swoop! In the centre is the Guttus being a narrow necked ceramic or glassen vessel used in sacrificial ceremonies for pouring (in drops only) water or oil during the offerings. To the right of the guttus is the Simpulum. This was a small, long-handled ladle used when making libations by pouring sacred wine over the head of the sacrificial victim. Lastly to the right is the Aspergilham...A sacred water sprinkler. This was a staff or rod tipped with an animals tail used to purify an area or sacrificial animal. Coin 2.. This second coin was minted probably around a year or less before the young caesar became joint Augustus...The portrait has a much softer rendition of the young 9/10 year old...Again the reverse shows sacrificial implements, this time there are 4 but two of them are different from "Coin 1". Coin 2.. Caracalla, as Caesar. 196-198 AD. AR Denarius (3.00 gm, 17mm). Rome mint. Struck 196-198 AD. Obv.: M AVR ANTO[N CAES PON]TIF, (Marcus Aurelius Antoninus Caesar Pontifex (High priest)), bareheaded and draped bust right. Rev.: DESTINATO IMPE[RAT],(Designation to the empire,basically calls Caracalla "Emperor to be "), Lituus, Apex, Bucranium, and Simpulum. RIC#6; BMCRE 193; RSC 53. VF. Interestingly... The following information comes from Harlan J Berk: The reverse calls Caracalla "emperor to be", a title accorded otherwise only to Titus as Caesar. The bucranium, here depicted with a beaded band tied around the bull's forehead and hanging down on both sides, is an unusual priestly attribute on Roman coins, otherwise occurring only on a small medallion of Commodus Caesar (BM pl. 84,13) on the aureus and denarius of Augustus once attributed to Caius Caesar Far left and right are again showing the Lituus and Simpulum, described above on "coin 1". But here (middle left) is shown an Apex. This was a religious cap worn by certain priests. Usually pointed at the top and held in place using two ties under the chin. Next to the Apex (middle right) is the most, imo, interesting implement being the Bucranium (ox skull). This was a symbol used in ritual sacrice being actually real or an object carved in stone or wood and probably originated from the ancient practice of sacrificing garlanded oxen to the gods as far back as neolithic times. Perhaps the most famous ancient example of a sculpted bucranium survives on the remaining section of the entablature of the Temple of Vespasian and Titus (80s AD) in the Roman Forum.Along with the bucranium are sculpted representations of the instruments of sacrifice: the whisk or aspergillum for sprinkling wine or water on the animal's head, the mallet for stunning it, the axe for killing it, the knife for cutting it up, a ceremonial wine jug, the patera or shallow plate for holding the wine, and the priest's headgear. Please feel free to post your coins of Caracalla as caesar.. Report this Post to the Staff

Kamnaskires Pillar of the Community United States 7066 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 08:11 am Quote: sweet little boy Yeah. Precious. Excellent write-up, Paul. Congrats on filling a collection gap. Great coins. Report this Post to the Staff
erafjel Pillar of the Community Sweden 2124 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 09:38 am Very interesting description of all the utensils. And nice coins, too. Report this Post to the Staff
Novicius Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 1168 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 1:09 pm Congratulations on filling the gap, Paul. Thanks for the very interesting, well illustrated and informative write-up too. Report this Post to the Staff
circusmax120 Valued Member United States 319 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 1:54 pm Ooooo, Paul...sweeeet historical write-up! Awesome breakdown of all the relevant symbols. shaking head Now I feel compelled to search for a Caracalla Caesar. My only related coin is a dupondius depicting him as a scowling emperor. Well done, my friend! Report this Post to the Staff
Palouche Pillar of the Community Spain 2752 Posts	Posted 02/19/2023 4:50 pm Thanks for the comments guys! Really appreciated. Also glad to see that when you spend a couple of hours or so writing up something that you are passionate about others, even if their collecting areas are different, still post an appreciative reply. Makes it all worthwhile! Paul. Report this Post to the Staff
maridvnvm Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 2099 Posts	Posted 02/20/2023 04:44 am Nice coins and write up. It is worth noting that RIC 4 is also available with the bust seen from the front. I have had a couple over the years. Caracalla Denarius Obv:- M AVR ANTONINVS CAES, draped and cuirassed bust right Rev:- SEVERI AVG PII FIL, sacrificial implements Minted in Rome. A.D. 196 Reference:- BMCRE 186 has matching bust type though not illustrated. RIC 4 (though bust from front rather than the more usual rear). RSC 587. Report this Post to the Staff
numismatic student Bedrock of the Community United States 11880 Posts	Posted 02/20/2023 12:10 pm Thanks for sharing your coins and your knowledge about the subject. IN NECESSARIIS UNITAS - IN DUBIIS LIBERTAS - IN OMNIBUS CARITAS THE MAN IN THE ARENA, Theodore Roosevelt at the Sorbonne Paris on April 23, 1910: "It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles or where the doer of deeds could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and comes up short again and again, because there is no effort without error or shortcoming, but who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions, who spends himself in a worthy cause; who, at the best, knows, in the end, the triumph of high achievement, and who, at the worst, if he fails, at least he fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who knew neither victory nor defeat." My coin website:https://fairfaxcoins.com Report this Post to the Staff
Palouche Pillar of the Community Spain 2752 Posts	Posted 02/21/2023 02:33 am Thank you... Quote: It is worth noting that RIC 4 is also available with the bust seen from the front Thanks Martin, that's interesting and I didn't know this so I'll keep my eyes peeled. Report this Post to the Staff
circusmax120 Valued Member United States 319 Posts	Posted 04/03/2023 11:58 am As I mentioned back in mid-February, my only related Caracalla is an as...not a denarius. Also...not the lustrous, youthful portrait seen on Paul's denarii, but a gnarled, grizzled, martial depiction of this complicated emperor. Here is the beautiful brute. Wonderfully scarred and rough. Perfect symbolism! The blue-green toning is a plus. Struck in 212 AD. Obverse: Laureled head of Caracalla facing right, ANTONINUS PIUS AVG BRIT. Reverse: P M TR P XVI COS III PP; Mars standing left, holding Victory, with seated captive. 25.5mm, Report this Post to the Staff
JohnConduitt Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 725 Posts	Posted 04/03/2023 2:17 pm I also don't have a Caracalla as caesar. This is my youngest looking. Caracalla AE18, 198-217 Tralles, Lydia. Bronze, 18-19mm, 4.60g. Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust right; AYT KA ANTΩN. Artemis walking right, looking left, holding bow and reaching for arrow from quiver at her shoulder, hound at foot; TΡAΛΛIANΩN (SNG France 1696). Found in Lincolnshire. The errors with the sacrificial instruments/implements are a bit of a pain. I had a similar problem with a denarius of Saloninus. I had to look up each item to see if it looked like anything on the coin, as what was described didn't match anything in RIC. This post is very useful! Edited by JohnConduitt 04/03/2023 2:20 pm Report this Post to the Staff
Novicius Pillar of the Community United Kingdom 1168 Posts	Posted 04/04/2023 08:42 am I don't have a Caracalla as Caesar, Paul, so I hope you don't mind me adding this bronze to your thread as a divergence. Caracalla does appear to be fairly young, though the coin is dated as 198-217 AD. I do like to look for odd or unusual coins that may not appeal to others, and this one fits the bill. I haven't come across anything similar during my searches. Antoninus Pius sports heavy beard, as do Marcus Aurelius, Commodus and Septimius Severus, while most have the prow to the right. Many have a cornucopiae above. The original keeper must have had a problem attributing the coin as his note says: "Apparently unpublished. Attributed with assistance by Dane Kurth (of Helvetica, editor at Wildwinds)." That is bringing in the big guns! Caracalla. 198-217 AD. Assarion of Cœla (Coela, Cela) in Thrace. Obverse: His laureate and draped bust right. Reverse: Prow of galley left, containing bundle of corn-ears, acrostilium (stem) ending in volute; dolphin left below. Bronze. Diameter 17mm. Weight: 3.86gm. Report this Post to the Staff
Canefan Valued Member United States 109 Posts	Posted 04/04/2023 10:22 pm Thanks for the informative post Palouche! Great coins, really like the reverses on both. This is my one and only Caracalla. Caracalla 198-217, RIC 22a AR Denarius, Rome IMP CAES M AVR ANTON AVG Securitas seated right holding scepter alter to right. SECVRIT ORBIS Report this Post to the Staff
circusmax120 Valued Member United States 319 Posts	Posted 04/06/2023 12:39 pm "SECVRIT ORBIS". Security and stability of the Roman world? I'm sure Septimius Severus had that in mind when he issued this coin...but kind of ironic considering the havoc his son would unleash within his family. Very nice coin, Canefan! Report this Post to the Staff
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