Faustina I Antoninus Pius wife RARE Silver Ancient Roman Coin Throne i52139

Item: i52139

Authentic Ancient

Coin of:

Faustina I
– Roman Empress Wife of Roman
Emperor
Antoninus Pius

After death Posthumous Issue under Antoninus Pius

Silver Denarius 18mm (3.52 grams) Rome mint circa 148-161 A.D.
Reference: RIC 353a (Antoninus Pius), C 61
DIVAFAVSTINA – Draped bust right.
AETERNITAS – Throne with scepter; peacock in front.

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Galeria Faustina, more familiarly referred to as Faustina the Elder (Latin:

Faustina Major; born

September 21

about 100, died October or November 140), was a Roman Empress and wife of

Roman

Emperor

Antoninus Pius

.

Faustina was the only known daughter of consul and prefect

Marcus Annius Verus

and

Rupilia

Faustina. Her brothers were consul

Marcus Annius Libo

and

praetor

Marcus Annius Verus

. Her maternal aunts perhaps were Roman Empress

Vibia

Sabina
,

Matidia Minor

. Her paternal grandfather had the same name as her father and

her maternal grandparents possibly were

Salonina Matidia

(niece of Roman Emperor

Trajan
) and

suffect consul

Lucius Scribonius Libo Rupilius Frugi Bonus

. Faustina was born and raised in

Rome.

As a private citizen, she married Antoninus Pius between 110

and 115. Faustina and Antoninus had a very happy marriage. Faustina bore

Antoninus four children, two sons and two daughters. They were:

• Marcus Aurelius Fulvius Antoninus (died before 138); his

  sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.

• Marcus Galerius Aurelius Antoninus (died before 138); his

  sepulchral inscription has been found at the Mausoleum of Hadrian in Rome.

  His name appears on a Greek Imperial coin.

• Aurelia Fadilla (died in 135); she married Aelius Lamia

  Silvanus or Syllanus. She appears to have had no children with her husband

  and her sepulchral inscription has been found in

  Italy
  .

• Annia Galeria Faustina Minor or

  Faustina the Younger

  (between 125-130-175), a future Roman Empress; she

  married her maternal cousin, future Roman Emperor

  Marcus Aurelius

  . She was the only child who survived to adulthood.

On

July 10
,

138, her uncle

emperor Hadrian

had died and her husband became the new emperor. Antoninus was Hadrian’s adopted

son and heir. Faustina became Roman Empress and the senate accorded her the

title of

. Faustina as an empress was well respected and this beautiful

woman was renowned for her wisdom. The

impugned her character, criticizing her as having

“excessive frankness” and “levity”. However, this doesn’t appear to be the case

with her character. Throughout her life, Faustina as a private citizen and an

empress was involved in assisting with charities, assisting the poor and

sponsoring and assisting in the education of Roman children, particularly of

Roman girls.

She can be viewed as one of the most moral, stable and

respected empresses in the history of the

Roman

Empire
. When Faustina died, Antoninus was in complete mourning for Faustina.

Antoninus did the following in memory of his loving wife:

• Deified her

  as a goddess (her apotheosis was portrayed on an

  honorary column

  )

• Had

  a temple

  built in the

  Roman

  Forum
  in her name, with priestesses in the temple.

• Had various coins with her portrait struck in her honor.

  These coins were inscribed DIVA FAVSTINA (“Divine Faustina”)

  and were elaborately decorated.

• Founded a charity called Puellae Faustinianae or

  Girls of Faustina, which assisted orphaned girls.

• Created a new alimenta (see

  Grain supply to the city of Rome

  ).

In 2008, archaeologists digging at the ancient site of

Sagalassos

in Turkey

discovered a colossal marble head which is believed to be that of Faustina.