RIC 082 Domitian

Æ Dupondius, 12.48g
Rome mint, 81 AD
Obv: IMP CAES DIVI VESP F DOMITIAN AVG P M; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: TR P COS VII DES VIII P P; S C in field; Minerva stg. l., with thunderbolt and spear; shield at her l. side
RIC 82 (C). BMC -. BNC -.
Acquired from Incitatus Coins, August 2021.

This middle bronze struck for Domitian's first issue in 81 is laureate, but appears to be made of brass. RIC notes: 'Examples clearly in brass, as opposed to copper, can be identified as dupondii, though the laureate head might lead one to identify them as asses.' Perhaps a carry-over formula from Domitian's middle bronzes as Caesar under Vespasian and Titus when his dupondii were laureate. Missing from both the BM and Paris collections, indicating it may be rarer than the 'common' RIC frequency rating implies. This Minerva type would later become standard on the denarii.