Faustina I Silver Denarius, RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A (denarius)

Monetary Context

During the reign of Antoninus Pius (AD 138 to 161), the imperial Roman currency system enjoyed an extended period of relative economic stability and fiscal moderation. The denarius served as the principal silver denomination of the empire, circulating alongside imperial brass sestertii and gold aurei. Denarii of this era were struck with an average mass ranging between 3.1 and 3.4 grams, possessing a silver purity hovering near 75 to 80 percent, continuing the standards established under Trajan and Hadrian. When Empress Faustina the Elder died between October and November of AD 140, the Roman Senate voted her full divine honors (consecratio). Antoninus Pius initiated an extensive numismatic program to celebrate her deification, transforming imperial coinage into a vehicle for dynastic sanctity and pious remembrance. The issue designated as RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A (denarius) belongs to the opening wave of these consecration coinages struck in AD 141, serving both as standard legal tender and as ideological reinforcement of the Antonine regime's moral and religious legitimacy.

Production and Minting

The entire regular production of RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A was centered exclusively at the imperial mint of Rome. Operating through several organized workshops (officinae), the Rome mint prepared round flans from cast silver rods or poured blanks, which were then cold- or warm-struck by hand between hand-cut iron or bronze dies. Mint workers maintained tight administrative control over alloy composition and average batch weights, though minor individual flan variances were standard. Dies for this issue reflect the exceptional artistic execution characteristic of the metropolitan mint during the early 140s AD, displaying high-relief engraving and meticulous attention to texture, particularly in the hair coils of the empress and the drapery folds of Pietas. Die survival rates across related consecration denarii suggest that die linkage was dense, with workshops striking coins rapidly to meet immediate ceremonial distributions and broader imperial payroll requirements.

Obverse Design and Portraiture

The obverse of RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A presents the draped bust of Diva Faustina the Elder facing right. Her portrait embodies the formal posthumous style introduced immediately after her deification. Her hair is elaborately dressed according to the fashion she popularized during her lifetime: waved in parallel horizontal loops around the head and drawn upward into a tall, braided coil resting on the crown. A delicate string of pearls or thin band is often woven through the hair, and the drapery covers her shoulders cleanly. Unlike later issues that sometimes depict her wearing a veil, this specific variety presents an uncovered head, emphasizing her timeless, youthful, and divine features. The engraving is executed with regal dignity, conveying the solemn status of a Roman empress elevated to the heavenly pantheon while preserving her recognizable personal physiognomy.

Reverse Iconography and Attributes

The reverse depicts Pietas, the personification of religious devotion and familial duty, standing facing left. She is fully draped and wears a veil that falls over her shoulders. With her extended right hand, she sprinkles incense grains over a small, lighted altar standing at her feet to the left. In her left hand, held close to her side or waist, she carries an incense box (acerra). The sacrificial scene is an iconic motif of Roman imperial coinage, explicitly invoking the religious rituals associated with the imperial cult and the consecrated memory of the late empress. Through Pietas, the coin links the personal grief and loyalty of Antoninus Pius to traditional Roman civic and sacred virtues. The depiction of the burning altar and incense offering symbolizes continuous prayer and reverence for Diva Faustina.

Epigraphy and Legends

The epigraphy of RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A is concise and strictly adheres to early posthumous conventions. The obverse legend reads DIVA AVG FAVSTINA, running clockwise along the border. The title DIVA denotes her deified status, while AVG (Augusta) recalls her imperial rank, followed by her personal name FAVSTINA. The reverse bears the inscription PIETAS AVG, an abbreviation for Pietas Augusti or Pietas Augusta, declaring either the piety of the emperor or the divine virtue associated with the imperial house. The lettering is rendered in regular, well-proportioned Roman square capitals, framed by an outer beaded border. The brevity of these legends distinguishes them from the later posthumous series of Faustina, which frequently introduced the formula DIVA FAUSTINA on the obverse and AETERNITAS or CONSECRATIO on the reverse.

Typology and Chronology

In the chronological framework established by Martin Beckmann through extensive die studies of Diva Faustina's coinage, the series carrying the obverse legend DIVA AVG FAVSTINA was the very first posthumous group struck, commencing immediately after her deification in AD 141. Within the cataloguing framework of Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC), volume III, type 394 covers reverse depictions of Pietas sacrificing at an altar, with subtype 394A denoting the specific variety without veil on the obverse and with Pietas holding the incense box. Paul Strack previously categorized this issue under his foundational catalogue of Antonine coinage, confirming its placement at the start of the consecration issues. Later in the 140s and 150s AD, the mint of Rome transitioned to the obverse legend DIVA FAUSTINA and developed complex reverse allegories of Aeternitas, Ceres, and Vesta, demonstrating that RIC 394A represents a tightly constrained initial issue from AD 141.

Circulation, Hoards, and Survival

Because it was struck in substantial quantities during the initial wave of deification issues, RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A entered broad circulation throughout the western and eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. Second-century silver denarii possessed high velocity of circulation and long survival periods, frequently remaining in active use through the Severan period until the debasements of the mid-third century AD drove them out of commerce under Gresham's Law. Specimens of this specific type have been documented across numerous major Romano-British and continental hoards, such as the Reka Devnia hoard in Bulgaria and several Antonine deposits from Roman Britain, Gaul, and Germany. Most surviving examples exhibit moderate to heavy wear consistent with several decades of commercial circulation, while high-grade examples from early hoards preserve the intricate die work of the Rome mint.

References

1. Diva Faustina: Coinage and Cult in Rome and the Provinces. pp. 25-42
2. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 72, no. 394A
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Antoninus Pius 394A (denarius). Type record ric.3.ant.394A_denarius
4. Le Tresor de Marcianopolis: Le tresor de Reka-Devnia. p. 36
5. Untersuchungen zur romischen Reichspragung des zweiten Jahrhunderts, Teil III: Die Reichspragung zur Zeit des Antoninus Pius. nos. 403-406