HJB-Scarce CARACALLA AS CAESAR, Denarius

  Scarce CARACALLA AS CAESAR,
    Denarius, Rome, 197 AD, 3.83g,
    BM-194, C-53 (12 Fr.), Rx:    
    DESTINATO IMPERAT Lituus, apex   
    (priestly cap), bucranium (skull
    of sacrificed bull), ladle, Heavy
    specimen. The reverse calls
    Caracalla "emperor to be", a title
    accorded otherwise only to Titus
    as Caesar. The bucranium, here
    [Image] [Image]depicted with a beaded band tied
    around the bull's forehead and
    hanging down on both sides, is an
    unusual priestly attribute on
    Roman coins, otherwise occurring
    only on a small medallion of
    Commodus Caesar (BM pl. 84,13)
    on the aureus and denarius of
    Augustus once attributed to Caius
    Caesar (BM pl. 17,14-15; see H.    
    Dressel, Roem.

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