Faustina I Gold Aureus, RIC III Antoninus Pius 367

Monetary Context and Imperial Consecration

The introduction of the gold aureus designated as RIC III Antoninus Pius 367 in AD 141 coincided with a critical juncture in the reign of Antoninus Pius. Empress Faustina the Elder passed away late in AD 140 or early in AD 141, prompting an extraordinary outpouring of institutional and personal grief from the emperor. Antoninus secured her immediate deification from the Senate, an act that transformed her official public identity from living Augusta to divine Diva. This political and religious transition required rapid visual dissemination across the Mediterranean world, a task ideally suited to the imperial gold coinage. The aureus occupied the pinnacle of the Roman monetary hierarchy, valued at twenty-five silver denarii or one hundred brass sestertii. Because gold denominations circulated predominantly among the provincial aristocracy, senatorial elites, military commanders, and high-level merchants, their thematic program carried profound ideological gravity. Rather than functioning simply as commercial specie, gold pieces like RIC III 367 announced fundamental shifts in imperial religion and dynastic succession. By honoring the deceased empress as a patroness of female virtue and divine grace, Antoninus Pius consolidated the moral and familial stability of his dynasty, reinforcing the tranquil image that defined his reign.

Mint Organization and Gold Production

The entire regular emission of imperial gold during this period was concentrated at the central mint of Rome. Operating under the administrative oversight of the imperial treasury, the Rome mint executed gold issues with exceptional metallurgical discipline and technical consistency. Blanks for the aureus were cast individually, carefully weighed to maintain standard adherence, and struck hot between hardened iron dies engraved by the most skilled artisans available in the capital. Under Antoninus Pius, the aureus was struck at a theoretical standard of approximately one-fortieth of a Roman pound (libra), yielding expected average weights in the range of 7.20 to 7.30 grams. Purity remained remarkably high, generally exceeding ninety-eight to ninety-nine percent fine gold. Die preparation for RIC III 367 reflects the apex of second-century Roman classicism. Engravers lavished great attention upon the portrait dies, cutting deep recesses into the bronze or iron matrices to capture subtle modulations in the empress's facial features and the complex topography of her signature coiffure. Die axes are typically adjusted to either the twelve o'clock or six o'clock positions, demonstrating the rigorous physical alignment practiced within the urban workshops.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse of RIC III Antoninus Pius 367 features a finely modeled right-facing bust of Diva Faustina, enveloped in classical drapery that gathers across the base of the neck. The portrait conveys a serene, idealized maturity, balancing individualized physical likeness with the aloof nobility expected of a divine personage. Her gaze is steady and horizontal, rendered without an explicit veil in this specific variety, emphasizing her elevated, celestial presence rather than mourning. The defining stylistic characteristic of the obverse is Faustina's elaborate and highly celebrated hairstyle. The hair is parted and waved into several deep horizontal tiers along the sides of the head before being drawn upward into a grand, coiled braided bun anchored firmly upon the crown. This distinctive architectural style, widely imitated by Roman matrons across Italy and the provinces, became the hallmark of her posthumous portraiture. Engravers carved each strand with meticulous care, achieving a tactile sense of texture and volume that stands in elevated relief against the polished gold flan.

Reverse Typology and Divine Identification

The reverse design of the type presents a solitary female figure standing towards the left, draped in traditional long garments and wearing a small diadem or stephane atop her brow. She performs a paired ritual gesture: her right hand is raised in an outward motion of salutation or benediction, while her left hand gathers the delicate hem of her skirt (palla), lifting it away from her stride. Numismatists have engaged in enduring debate regarding the exact identity of this figure. The pioneering compilers of Roman Imperial Coinage tentatively labeled the depiction as Venus (Venus?), reflecting the goddess's traditional association with feminine beauty, dynastic fecundity, and the imperial house. However, subsequent scholarship has emphasized that the posture closely parallels the classical iconographic gestures of Pudicitia (modesty and chastity) or Spes (hope), the latter frequently represented advancing leftward while raising her skirt. Because the surrounding inscription does not provide a specific divine epithet, the figure may intentionally synthesize multiple divine virtues, assimilating the memory of Faustina directly into the pantheon of idealized Roman womanhood.

Epigraphy and Consecration Inscriptions

The inscriptions on RIC III Antoninus Pius 367 are distinguished by their notable brevity and programmatic clarity, standing in marked contrast to the verbose titulature found on contemporary issues struck for living rulers. The obverse legend reads DIVA FAVSTINA, struck continuously along the perimeter of the flan starting from the lower left. This concise dedicatory phrase explicitly designates the deceased empress as divine, confirming the senatorial decree of consecratio and declaring her perpetual status among the gods of Rome. The reverse legend consists of the solitary title AVGVSTA, positioned neatly around the standing female figure. In the early posthumous emissions of AD 141, the title Augusta was retained on denarii and aurei to preserve Faustina's supreme imperial rank alongside her newly acquired divine title. The epigraphy is characterized by refined, classical capital letters with distinct serifs and balanced spacing. The absence of marks of minting, officina numerals, or imperial regnal dates on both faces leaves the message uncluttered, emphasizing eternal divine majesty over administrative chronology.

Typological Classification and Chronological Sequence

In his exhaustive study of the coinage of Diva Faustina, Martin Beckmann established that her posthumous issues can be divided into distinct chronological phases based on die linkages, hairstyle shifts, and reverse groupings. RIC III Antoninus Pius 367 belongs to the foundational group of consecration gold struck in AD 141, produced immediately after the creation of her imperial cult. This specific type must be carefully distinguished from closely related gold issues within the Diva Faustina series. While numerous aurei share the obverse legend DIVA FAVSTINA, they combine it with diverse reverse subjects such as Aeternitas, Ceres holding a torch and scepter, or a temple dedicated to the newly deified empress. Furthermore, other AVGVSTA reverse types depict Ceres holding wheat ears or seated on a throne, whereas RIC 367 is strictly reserved for the variety with the standing female figure (frequently identified as Venus or Pudicitia) raising her right hand and lifting her skirt. While the main consecration series continued to be struck in silver and bronze throughout the 140s and 150s AD, this specific gold type remains tightly bounded to the initial year of production.

Circulation, Hoarding, and Monetary Function

Because gold coins represented vast sums of purchasing power, they did not pass frequently hand-to-hand in routine day-to-day retail transactions. An aureus of Antoninus Pius equaled approximately one-third to one-fourth of a legionary soldier's gross annual pay, reserving its primary role for state disbursements, tax remittances, wholesale trade, and private wealth accumulation. Consequently, specimens of RIC III Antoninus Pius 367 experienced minimal physical wear during their primary operational lifespan. Gold coinage of the second century exhibited high velocity across the Roman Empire before being removed from the money supply into private hoards. Aurei of Antoninus Pius and Faustina are frequently encountered in major hoard deposits spanning from Britain and Gaul to the Danubian frontier and the Levant. Many remained in storage for decades, surfacing alongside subsequent issues of Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus, and Commodus. The survival of well-preserved examples highlights both the careful stewardship of high-value gold reserves by Roman provincials and the enduring reverence accorded to Diva Faustina throughout the Antonine era.

References

1. Diva Faustina: Coinage and Cult in Rome and the Provinces. pp. 22-38
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Antoninus Pius 367. ric.3.ant.367
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 69, no. 367
4. Untersuchungen zur römischen Reichsprägung des zweiten Jahrhunderts, Teil III: Antoninus Pius. pp. 142-155