Caracalla, 198-217. Aureus (Gold, 21 mm, 6.52 g, 12 h), Rome, 215. ANTONINVS PIVS AVG GERM Laureate, draped and cuirassed bust of Caracalla to right, with both pteryges visible, raising his left shoulder. Rev. P M TR P XVIII COS IIII P P Sol mounting fast quadriga to left, holding reins in his right hand and whip in his left. BMC 141 note. Calicó 2722. Cohen -. RIC 265f. Very rare and with a bold and attractive portrait. Minor marks and light scratches and slightly wavy, otherwise, good very fine.


The year 215 was a moment of intense movement and escalating violence in Caracalla’s reign. The emperor travelled through western Asia Minor and the eastern provinces, beginning the year in Nicomedia before moving on to Antiochia and then Alexandria in Egypt. There, the citizens reportedly ridiculed him for the murder of his younger brother Geta; in response, Caracalla slaughtered the deputation that had welcomed him to the city and then set his troops upon its inhabitants. By 216, he had returned to Antiochia, where he prepared for war with Parthia.

Against this background, the figure of Sol in his fast-moving quadriga should not be understood as a reference to Caracalla’s travels. The type speaks instead to a wider imperial language. Sol was an obvious divine figure through whom ideas of power, visibility, and command could be expressed: he crossed the heavens each day, brought light to the world, and stood above the affairs of men. On this aureus, his image lends Caracalla’s rule something of that same solar authority. The reverse does not illustrate a particular episode, but presents imperial power in association with the radiance and supremacy of the sun god.