Caracalla augustus, 198 – 217. Aureus 213, AV 20 mm, 6.89 g. ANTONINVS PIVS AVG BRIT Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust r. Rev. P M TR P XVI, COS IIII P P View of the Circus Maximus, with spina, metae, and obelisk in centre. C –. BMC p. 439, † corr. (reverse legend). RIC 211B (reverse legend). Calicó 2710 (this reverse die). Extremely rare and among the finest specimens in private hands of this important and fascinating issue. A portrait of excellent style and a finely engraved reverse die. About extremely fineGraded XF*, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 5/5, NGC photo certificate number 8567768-002. Ex Triton XX, 2017, 800 and Oslo Myntgalleri 39, 2024, 1284 sales. This impressive gold aureus was struck for distribution as public largesse in the early summer of AD 213, when Caracalla was present in Rome before setting out to make war on the Alemanni. Part of his need to be in the capital at this time stemmed from the celebration of the reopening of the Circus Maximus. In January, the emperor had begun a project to repair, renovate, and expand the famous Roman stadium to mark his assumption of the consulship for the fourth time. The Circus was in need of some work, especially considering that the last time it had received serious repairs and renovation was over a century earlier, in AD 103, during the reign of Trajan. Caracalla’s renovations significantly enlarged, embellished, and repaired the structure of the Circus Maximus. New, wider starting gates were installed to allow for better organization of four-horse chariot teams at the start of races. The entrance arches for spectators were also notably widened and decorated. Once all of the renovation and repair work was complete, the emperor, who was a great fan of chariot racing and an ardent supporter of the Blue faction, is said to have remarked only that he had made the Circus Maximus “adequate” for the Roman people. The detailed architectural reverse type of the present coin serves to advertise just how adequate the stadium was after Caracalla’s renovation. It shows a view of the Circus Maximus from the Palatine Hill. The starting gates are visible on the right, surmounted by statues. Looking around the stadium counterclockwise from the starting gates is the Arch of Titus surmounted by a quadriga, and the temple of Sol, to whom the Circus Maximus was dedicated. In the center of the stadium is the spina, which has three conical metae (turning posts) at each end. The center of the spina is ornamented with an obelisk of Seti I or Ramesses II, carried off from Egypt by Augustus in 10 BC, which now resides in Rome’s Piazza del Popolo. To the left of the obelisk stands a statue of the goddess Cybele riding on a lion while to its right stands the apparatus for the dolphin- and egg-shaped lap markers. It is truly a testament to the engraver's great skill that all of these well-known features of the Circus Maximus are clearly identifiable in the design of a coin with a diameter of only 20 millimeters. Please find here the video of the coin