RIC 060 Domitian

AR Denarius, 3.19g
Rome mint, 81 AD
Obv: IMP CAES DOMITIANVS AVG PONT; Head of Domitian, laureate, bearded, r.
Rev: TR P COS VII DES VIII P P; Minerva stg. l., with Victory and spear; at feet, shield
RIC 60 (R2). BMC p. 299 note. RSC 565. BNC -.
Ex Private Collection.

A rare Group 4 'PONT' denarius depicting a cult image of Minerva holding Victory. This Minerva/Victory type was only struck within the first year of Domitian's accession and would not become one of the standard Minerva types repeated throughout the reign. The religious ceremonies required for Domitian to assume the title Pontifex Maximus had not yet finished by the time this denarius was produced. Here he is simply PONT, or in other words a member of the College of Pontiffs. Some have argued that PONT is the same as PM, I disagree. Titus as Caesar early on had also used the title PONT on his denarii and he was never Pontifex Maximus under Vespasian - only the emperor can be Pontifex Maximus or greatest priest.

RIC cites one example in the ANS collection, the BM cites Cohen 565. Missing from the Paris collection.

Nicely centred.