Commodus, Denarius, silver, reign 179-192, minted 188-189

Commodus, Denarius, silver, reign 179-192, minted 188-189, weight 3.05 g, diameter 18 mm. Obverse: laureate head right; legend M COMM ANT P FEL AVG BRIT. Reverse: Mars, helmeted, nude, standing left, holding olive branch in right hand and vertical spear in left; legend MART PAC P M TR P XIIII COS V P P. Strike: Rome mint, centered strike on sound flan, normal die axis. Toning: uniform light grey cabinet tone with slight peripheral iridescence. References: RIC III 175; BMCRE 215; Cohen 540; RSC 540; Sear RCV 5632. Issued during Commodus’s fourteenth tribunician year (10 December 188 – 9 December 189), this denarius records his fifth consulship and the title Pater Patriae. The depiction of Mars Pacifer, a war god carrying an olive branch, aligns with Commodus’s public emphasis on bringing peace through military power after campaigns in Britain and along the Danube. The obverse legend proclaims his victories in Britain (BRIT) and his adopted titles reflecting Antonine lineage. Denarii of this period were struck at Rome as part of the regular annual issues that marked each renewal of tribunician power, providing a precise dating framework valuable for modern chronology of the reign.