Faustina the Younger Silver Denarius, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719

Monetary and Dynastic Context

During the joint reign of Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus (AD 161 to 169) and the subsequent sole reign of Marcus Aurelius (AD 169 to 180), the denarius served as the backbone of Roman urban trade and inter-provincial economic activity. As the principal high-volume silver denomination of the principate, it sustained military payrolls, civic administrations, and domestic markets. Alongside its commercial functions, the denarius served as an essential medium for state messaging. Coinage struck in the name of female members of the imperial household, particularly the Augusta Faustina the Younger, addressed the crucial theme of dynastic stability. Faustina, daughter of Antoninus Pius and wife of Marcus Aurelius, bore at least thirteen children, an extraordinary biological accomplishment celebrated extensively on her coinage. The issue catalogued as RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719 reflects the political urgency of communicating that the Roman state was blessed with abundant legitimate heirs. By invoking the happiness of the times through an image of maternal abundance, the imperial court sought to reassure citizens, soldiers, and senatorial elites that peaceful succession was guaranteed.

Mint Operation and Production Standards

The production of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719 took place entirely at the imperial mint in Rome, which maintained exclusive authority over precious metal emissions for the western and central empire during this period. The officinae responsible for empress issues operated alongside those striking for Marcus Aurelius and Lucius Verus. The denarius during the early to middle reign of Marcus Aurelius was struck on an imperial weight standard theoretically pegged around 1/96 of a Roman pound, yielding an average target weight near 3.25 to 3.40 grams, though surviving individual specimens vary due to striking tolerances, planchet preparation techniques, and subsequent circulation wear. Metallurgical analyses of Antonine silver have demonstrated that under Marcus Aurelius, silver fineness stood at approximately 75 to 79 percent, marking a slight decline from the standards of the early second century AD, but maintaining adequate stability to prevent monetary disruption. Planchets were cast in spherical molds before being hot-struck between engraved bronze or iron dies, with production volumes organized to support continuous distribution through treasury expenditures.

Obverse Portraiture and Style

The obverse of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719 depicts a draped bust of Faustina the Younger facing right. She is shown bare-headed, without the stephane or diadem often reserved for divinized or elevated ceremonial appearances. The hairstyle is rendered in the distinctive Antonine court style favored during her middle and later years: the hair is parted down the center, dressed in soft, parallel horizontal waves that frame the temple and ear, and gathered tightly into a coiled chignon or round braided bun set low at the back of the head. Subtle strands occasionally curl gently near the nape of the neck. Die engravers at the Rome mint captured Faustina's mature profile with naturalistic modeling, emphasizing aristocratic features while balancing individual portraiture with idealized imperial serenity. The drapery across her shoulders is treated with fine, rhythmic folds that terminate neatly along the lower field, leaving sufficient margin for the uninterrupted inscription.

Reverse Iconography and Symbolism

The reverse iconography presents a complex multi-figure tableau dedicated to family fertility. A draped female figure, embodying either Faustina herself or the personification of Fecunditas assimilated into the likeness of the empress, stands facing left. In her arms she cradles two infants, wrapped in swaddling clothes. She is accompanied by two additional children standing at her feet: one child stands at her right side and another at her left side, both reaching upward or standing in protective proximity to her robes. This composition creates a balanced pyramidal arrangement totaling four imperial offspring. The imagery directly recalls the historical birth of imperial children, particularly the birth of the twins Commodus and Titus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus on August 31, AD 161, alongside their surviving elder sisters, Annia Aurelia Galeria Faustina and Annia Aurelia Fadilla. Through this tender yet formal artistic arrangement, the coin visually substantiates the promise of enduring imperial peace and divine favor through domestic prosperity.

Epigraphy and Legend Analysis

The epigraphy of this type is concise and focused, conforming to the simplified titulature adopted for Faustina during her husband's reign. The obverse legend reads FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, written continuously in clockwise direction along the border of dots without imperial numbering or patronymics. This streamlined form contrasts with her earlier issues under Antoninus Pius, where she was frequently titled FAVSTINA AVG ANTONINI AVG PII FIL. On the reverse, the abbreviated legend reads TEMPOR FELIC, expanding to Temporum Felicitas in the nominative or ablative form, translating as 'The Felicity of the Times' or 'In the Happy Season'. The inscription is distributed symmetrically across the upper perimeter, occasionally divided by the head or shoulders of the central maternal figure. The Latin lettering uses classic Roman imperial capitals, characterized by precise vertical strokes, subtle serifs, and compact spacing designed to fit the limited circumference of the denarius flan.

Typology and Chronological Classification

Within the Roman Imperial Coinage framework, RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719 is classified under the lifetime coinage of Faustina the Younger struck during the reign of Marcus Aurelius, spanning the broad chronological bracket between the accession of the emperor in AD 161 and the death of the Augusta at Halala in Cappadocia during late AD 175 or early 176. However, numismatic scholars, notably Wolfgang Szaivert in his corpus on the coinages of Marcus Aurelius (MIR 18), place the TEMPOR FELIC issues displaying four children in the earliest phase of the reign, circa AD 161 to 162. This attribution aligns with the celebrated arrival of male twins in AD 161, which allowed the imperial mint to present four living children together for the first time. The type is closely related to companion issues in gold and bronze, including aurei, sestertii, and dupondii or asses, which share identical or closely parallel multi-child compositions. It is distinguished from later Fecunditas issues where different counts of children reflect changing family configurations following infant mortality.

Circulation Patterns and Archaeological Evidence

Denarii of RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719 circulated extensively across the provinces of the Roman Empire and remained in active trade networks for decades after their initial release. Hoard evidence from Roman Britain, the Rhine and Danube frontiers, and the Italian peninsula indicates that silver denarii of Marcus Aurelius and Faustina II formed a substantial component of late Antonine and Severan currency pools. Because their silver purity remained around three-quarters fine, they were not selectively hoarded or culled in the immediate aftermath of production, circulating freely alongside earlier denarii of Trajan, Hadrian, and Antoninus Pius. Many recorded specimens exhibit moderate to heavy wear consistent with prolonged usage through the Severan dynasty and into the mid-third century AD, when the introduction and eventual dominance of the debased double denarius (antoninianus) pushed older, purer denarii out of regular commercial exchange and into melt-down crucibles or domestic hoards.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Vol. IV: Antoninus Pius to Marcus Aurelius. pp. 403-404, nos. 156-159
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC III Marcus Aurelius 719. ric.3.m_aur.719
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. III: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. p. 272, no. 719
4. Die Münzprägung des Kaisers Marcus Aurelius nebst Lucius Verus und Commodus (MIR 18). Moneta Imperii Romani 18, type 37