The six bust types of Plautilla

Hill (The Coinage of Septimius Severus and his family of the Mint of Rome A.D. 193-217, p. 8) has identified five different styles of bust for Plautilla from the mint at Rome. Similarly, Temeryazev & Makarenko (The Coinage of Roman Empresses, vol II, pp. 44-45) have identified five styles from the Rome mint and one from Laodicea.

I have examples of all. Again, post whatever you feel is relevant!

The earliest (AD 202), Hill type Ei/T&M type 2, depicts the empress as youthful, with hair in ridges plaited horizontally and with a large bun at the back of the head, off the neck:


RIC 361; BMCRE 401; RSC 10; RCV 7069; T&M 435; Hill 575A

The second (AD 202), Hill type Eii/T&M type 3, features a similarly youthful bust, her hair with slanting plaits and a bun which is lower on the head but still above the neck:


RIC 363a; BMCRE 411; RSC 1; RCV 7065; T&M 421; Hill 583 & 585

A third type, also early (AD 202), Hill type Eii (var.)/T&M type 4, has the hair in similarly slanting plaits, but instead of a bun, the hair is coiled at the back of the neck:


RIC 365a; BMCRE 418; RSC 12; RCV 7066; T&M 433; Hill 584 & 586

Similar is the bust used at the Laodicea mint (AD 202), T&M type 1, which shows Plautilla with plaits coiled behind the head and barely on the neck:



A fifth type, used later in Caracalla's reign (ca AD 203), Hill type Li/T&M type 5, depicts her hair in waves, not plaits, and gathered into a small queue-knot behind the neck; her ear is exposed:


RIC 367; BMCRE 422; RSC 16; RCV 7072; T&M 430; Hill 607 & 608

The latest bust type (AD 204), Hill type Lii/T&M type 6, is similar, but her hair covers her ears:


RIC 369; BMCRE 429; RSC 25b; RCV 7074; T&M 437; Hill 661

 

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All are quite lovely!!!

My sole example with the hair covering her ears-Venus reverse.

 

Guess I have the earliest:


Imperial Rome
Plautilla, r. 202-205 A.D.
Rome Mint, AR Denarius, 18.82 mm x 3.15 grams
Obv.: PLAVTILLAE AVGVSTAE. Draped bust right, hair coiled in vertical ridges and fastened in bun on back
Rev.: CONCORDIAE AETERNAE. Caracalla standing left, clasping hands with Plautilla standing right
Ref.: RIC IV-1 Caracalla 361, p. 269

 

@ MZ. Who's that on the feet of Venus ? Left..

 

It's supposed to be Cupid holding a helmet...

Obv. PLAVTILLA AVGVSTA, draped bust right.
Rev. VENVS VICTRIX, Venus standing left, holding apple and palm and leaning upon round shield to right; to left, Cupid standing left, holding helmet.

 

Wow, nice sub-set collection @Roman Collector ! They all look great, and I have no favorite. I would just have them all...

I have RomanCollector catalog #2 Plautilla Reverse with Concordia:


RI Plautilla 202-205 CE m CaracallaAR Denarius 3.7g Concordia patera scepter RIC 363

 

Mine is definitely from the earliest type, and rendered rather skilfully by a celator with obviously a bit of experience.

 

In most of her portraits, Plautilla appears to be very attractive, but yet Caracalla couldn't stand to be around her. I wonder if she was a shrew or something was wrong with her personality. But, then again, Caracalla didn't have all his oars in the water.

 

I would count it as a blessing and a compliment if Caracalla couldn't stand to be around me.

 

She was not bad looking at all...



But neither was Caracalla if the images from the reign of Septimius Severus are to be believed. I know he had his statues adopt a meaner look when he was sole emperor, but here he looks like a handsome young man sporting curls that would make Bob Marley quite envious.



The problem appeared to be two fold:

1) Plautila did not love Caracalla, and being a naive young girl she didn't hide her lack of love for the future emperor (a huge mistake). This made Caracalla despise her. She was also a spendthrift and got on Caracalla's nerves because of that.

However, he seems not to have hated her enough to keep from sleeping with her, as they managed to produce a daughter in 204 CE. But her father's plot in 205 CE to murder the imperial family definitely killed any shred of tolerance Caracalla had for Plautila. After that she was as good as dead. She was exiled to an island and Caracalla eventually had her strangled in 211 CE along with her daughter.

2) Her father, Fulvius Plautianus, was overly ambitious and got on Caracalla's nerves. And it doesn't help that when he learned about the marital troubles he correctly judged his life was in danger and ploted to kill Caracalla and Septimius Severus.

 

I'm tempted to add that it was an arranged marriage, but my first wife and I picked each other out with no coercion, and that didn't work out much better, lol.

 

You had her exiled to an island? LOL

 

I believe Caracalla realized that Plautianus had every intend of succeeding Septimius since Caracalla was too young but Caracalla was smart enough to realize his continued existence depended on Plautianus dying before Septimius. Lets recall that Clodius Albinus once was told that he was next in line. How did that work out?

My favorite Plautilla is Eastern but a bit different in the way the last ridge collects the others from the top of the head.

 

I'm quite, dare I say, smitten with that earlier bust, and @Roman Collector your coin's strike clarity is superb.

 

Inspiring thread...
In the past I have studied (and published) about Plautilla and collected all the different bust types and their combinations with the different reverses. Below is the result :


Plautilla overview
A virtual tray showing obverses and reverses of all the silver coins minted for Plautilla that I could find.
Including 14 types of denarii from Rome featuring all the known variations of hairdo and reverses, 3 types of denarii from Laodicaea, and as a bonus, a drachm from Caesarea

Q

 

Neat breakdown of hairdos! I'd really like one with an early bust and a marriage commemorative reverse.

Do provincials count?

PLAUTILLA
Rare. AE Assarion. 3.68g, 19.4mm. BITHYNIA, Nicomedia, circa AD 202-205. RG 253 (same obv. die); Lindgren & Kovacs 172 (same obv. die). O: ΦOY ΠΛAYTIΛΛA CEBA-CTH, draped bust right. R: NIKOMHΔEΩN - ΔIC NEΩKO/PΩN, Triton swimming left, holding horn and trident.

 

Looks like Hill type Eii.

Here's a provincial from Nicaea from my collection:


It appears to have the earliest type of hairdo.

Whereas this one looks more like her mother-in-law, Julia Domna!

 

RC, thats a neat collection!

~Doug

 

i'm wiff ya JA