Carinus, Antoninianus, billon, reign as Caesar, struck 282

Carinus, Antoninianus, billon, reign as Caesar, struck 282, weight 3.90 g, diameter 22 mm. Obverse: legend M AVR CARINVS NOB CAES; radiate, draped and cuirassed bust right. Reverse: legend PIETAS AVGG; in exergue ZKA; sacrificial implements—sprinkler, simpulum, jug, patera, knife and lituus—arranged horizontally. Strike: well-centered on a slightly irregular flan, full legends and devices visible, typical late-third-century billon fabric. Toning: light silver-grey with darker grey highlights in recessed areas. References: RIC V Carus 155; Cohen 69; ERIC II p. 516. Issued in 282 while Carinus held the junior title of Caesar under his father Carus, this antoninianus belongs to the final phase of the denomination’s debased billon standard. The exergual mark ZKA places the issue at the mint of Cyzicus, where Greek officina letters were employed; Z (seventh workshop) precedes the mint abbreviation KΑ. The reverse type with sacrificial instruments and the legend PIETAS AVGG promotes the imperial family’s piety at a time when Carus was engaged in his Persian campaign and seeking divine favor. The coin illustrates both the administrative practice of multiple officinae working within a provincial mint and the ideological messaging used to support the legitimacy of a newly elevated Caesar during a period of rapid succession and military activity.