Faustina Friday – The Children of Faustina the Younger, Part III

[Roman Collector]

Friday felicitations, fellow Faustina Fanatics! I hope you have a coin-filled weekend ahead.

In Part II of this four-part series, we learned of the death of Faustina and Marcus’s firstborn, Domitia Faustina, in 150 or 151 CE, of the birth of Faustina III in 150 or 151 CE, and the births and deaths of two sons in 152 and 157 CE, likely named T. Aelius Antoninus and T. Aelius Aurelius, respectively. We noted that the numismatic record was of mixed quality for documenting the births of those children. By 159 CE, the imperial couple had lost three of five children, with only the two sisters, Lucilla and Faustina III, surviving.

Today's installment will discuss the birth of Faustina's sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth children. The numismatic record documenting these children is very extensive and time and space constraints prohibit me from illustrating every coin documenting their births. Rather, I shall illustrate only one coin of each reverse type, using the coins in my own collection whenever possible, and will simply note parallel issues in other denominations.

Annia Aurelia Fadilla, born 159 CE

Fadilla had been the name of Faustina the Younger's older sister and of her paternal grandmother, a grand dame who had also transmitted the name of her parents to Antoninus Pius.[1] Gold and bronze coins bearing the reverse inscription IVNONI LVCINAE and depicting a female figure standing, holding an infant in her arm, with two older children at her feet were issued during the final years of the reign of Antoninus Pius, AD 158-161.[1] During this period, the empress's obverse titulature read FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, her reverses no longer bore the filiation AVGVSTI PII FIL, and she wore an unassuming hairstyle described by Beckmann as "hair pulled back into a small low bun."[2]

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman orichalcum sestertius, 26.31 g, 29 mm, 12 h.
Rome, 159 CE.
Obv: FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, bare-headed and draped bust, right (Beckmann Type 5 hairstyle).
Rev: IVNONI LVCINAE, Juno standing left between two children, holding a third child on left arm.
Refs: RIC 1649; BMCRE 918; Cohen 136; RCV 5277; MIR 18.

This reverse type was also issued in the aureus (RIC 692, BMCRE 116) and medium bronze (RIC 1650) denominations. I have previously discussed this reverse type elsewhere. The Juno Lucina reverse type refers to childbirth. As we noted in Part I of this series on Faustina's children, coins depicting Juno Lucina were issued to commemorate the birth of Domitia Faustina in 147 CE. Lucina was the aspect of Juno associated with light and childbirth, during which she eased the pain and made sure all went well. Coins portraying Juno Lucina typically commemorate a birth in the Imperial family or that the help of the goddess had been invoked.[3]

The three children on the reverse are thought to represent Lucilla, Faustina III, and newborn Fadilla.[4] How do we know this? First, we must know when the coin was issued. In the absence of titulature beyond AVGVSTA, we must turn to the parallel issues of her father, who also issued coins with this motif on the reverse.

Antoninus Pius, 138-161 CE.
Roman orichalcum sestertius, 23.46 g, 32.3 mm, 12 h.
Rome, December 158 – December 159 CE.
Obv: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P XXII, laureate head, right.
Rev: PIETATI AVG COS IIII, Pietas, standing facing, head left, holding globe in extended right hand and child on left arm; on either side of her, small girl standing, raising one hand.
Refs: RIC 1002; BMCRE 2061-62; Cohen 620; Strack 1164; RCV –.

Given the similarity in reverse motif of Antoninus Pius' PIETATI AVG COS IIII type and Faustina's IVNONI LVCINAE type, Szaivert dates Faustina's IVNONI LVCINAE coins to AD 159.[5] I concur it is highly likely that these coins were issued simultaneously and to commemorate an actual event, the birth of Princess Fadilla,[6] for she was the only child born to Faustina in that year.[7] This PIETATI AVG COS IIII reverse type continues into Pius's 23^rd tribunician year (RIC 1031, BMCRE 2089), suggesting Fadilla may have been born in December 159.

Fadilla married M. Peducaeus Plautius Quintillus, who was Consul in 177 CE with Commodus Caesar.[8] She was still alive in 190; Herodian reports she was instrumental in warning her brother Commodus that a certain Cleander was endangering the grain supply.[9]

Annia Cornificia Faustina Minor, born 160 CE

Cornificia was named after her paternal aunt, Marcus Aurelius's sister, who died in 152 CE.[10] Gold, silver, and bronze coins bearing the reverse inscription FECVND AVGVSTAE and depicting a female figure standing, holding an infant in each arm, with two older children at her feet were issued in the last three weeks of AD 160. I have discussed this reverse type previously elsewhere.

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman oricalchum sestertius, 22.36 gm, 33.7 mm, 12 h.
Rome, c. December 160 CE.
Obv: FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, bare-headed and draped bust, right (Beckmann Type 5 hairstyle).
Rev: FECVND AVGVSTAE S C, (Faustina as) Fecunditas standing left, between two children (thought to represent Faustina III and Lucilla), holding two infants in her arms (thought to represent Fadilla and Cornificia).
Refs: RIC 1635; BMCRE 902-904; Cohen 96; Strack 1336; RCV 5273; MIR 10.

Claire Franklin spoofed this coin in her April 4, 2019 "Franklin's World" comic in Coins Weekly:



We may date this coin so precisely because the combination of titles on the coins of Antoninus Pius and Marcus Aurelius with parallel iconography was only possible from 10 December through 31 December, 160. These coins with parallel iconography are illustrated below.

Antoninus Pius, 138-161 CE.
Roman AR denarius, 3.15 g, 18.1 mm, 11 h.
Rome, 10 December 160- March, AD 161.
Obv: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P XXIIII, laureate head, right.
Rev: PIETATI AVG COS IIII, Faustina II (as Pietas) standing left, holding a child on each arm; at each side of her, a child standing looking towards her and raising hand.
Refs: RIC 313c; BMCRE 1013-14; Cohen 631; Strack 384; RCV 4098.

Aureus of Marcus Aurelius as Caesar (RIC 487b). The reverse inscription, TR POT XV COS II DESIG III, dates the coin to 10 December - 31 December, AD 160. Photo: Ira & Larry Goldberg auction 104, lot 3322, 12 June 2018.

Given the identical iconography between the FECVND AVGVSTAE issue of Faustina and the dated coins of her father and of her husband, Szaivert dates the coins to 160.[11] The coinage was almost certainly issued to commemorate the birth of Cornificia, who was born in August 160, according to an inscription (C 1505) and a record in the Fasti Ostienses.[12]

Cornificia survived to adulthood and married M. Petronius Sura Mamertinus, who became consul in AD 182. A period of unrest followed her father's death in AD 180, when her brother Commodus became the sole emperor. Her husband, her son Petronius Antoninus,[13] her husband's younger brother M. Petronius Sura Septimianus (who became co-consul with Commodus in AD 190) and his son Antoninus were murdered by Commodus in AD 190 or 191.[14] Cornificia was not involved and survived the purge, only to be forced to commit suicide by Caracalla in 213 CE.[15] I have previously written about the life and death of Cornificia elsewhere.

Titus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus and Lucius Aelius Aurelius Commodus, born 31 August 161

Coins of two reverse types signifying the birth of twins to Faustina were issued to commemorate the arrival of two male heirs to the imperial throne. One type bears the legend TEMPOR FELIC and depicts a female figure standing, holding a baby in each arm while four older children stand beside her, two on each side. This reverse type was issued in all metals. I have previously written about this reverse type elsewhere. Another type bears the legend SAECVLI FELICIT and depicts two infant boys seated on a draped pulvinar. It too was issued in all metals. I have previously written about this reverse type elsewhere. There are a large number of varieties of each of these types, which I discussed in more detail in the previous installments of Faustina Friday to which I’ve linked, and I illustrate only one representative specimen of each type, below.

Faustina II, 147-175 CE.
Roman AR denarius, 3.10 g, 17.7 mm, 5 h.
Rome, after 31 August 161 CE.
Obv: FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, bare-headed and draped bust, right.
Rev: TEMPOR FELIC, female figure, standing left, holding an infant in each arm; at either side, two children standing.
Refs: RIC 719; BMC 156-157; RSC 221; RCV 5263; CRE 179; MIR 31-4/10a.
Note: The coin well illustrates the "all-round legends" as used December 160 - 163.

 

 

Faustina II, 147-175.
Roman orichalcum sestertius, 24.65 g, 30.4 mm, 12 h.
Rome, after 31 August 161 CE.
Obv: FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, draped bust, right, wearing stephane.
Rev: SAECVLI FELICIT SC, draped throne on which there are two infant boys, Antoninus and Commodus, with stars above their heads.
Refs: RIC 1665n; BMCRE 939, 941; Cohen 193; RCV –; MIR27-6/10a, b Diad.

The older twin, Titus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus, died in 166 CE at the age of four or five.[16] Commodus, of course, survived to adulthood and assumed the throne after the death of his father on 17 March 180.

Conclusion and Preview

The coinage issued from 159-161 CE well-documents the birth of Faustina's sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth children, such that by the TEMPOR FELIC issue of 161, six living children are documented in the numismatic record: Lucilla, Faustina III, Fadilla, Cornificia, Titus, and Commodus. In the fourth and final installment of this series on Faustina’s children, we'll discuss the issues commemorating the birth of Faustina's son Marcus Annius Verus in 162, which is well attested in the numismatic record, and then discuss a few possible candidates for coins commemorating the birth of a son, Hadrianus, in the mid-160s, and a daughter, Vibia Sabina, in 170 or 171. The numismatic evidence for coins issued to commemorate Faustina's two youngest children is very conjectural, as we shall see.

~~~

Notes

1. Levick, Barbara. Faustina I and II: Imperial Women of the Golden Age. Oxford University Press, 2014, pp. 115.

2. Beckmann, Martin, Faustina the Younger: Coinage, Portraits, and Public Image, A.N.S. Numismatic Studies 43, American Numismatic Society, New York, 2021, p. 83.

3. Jones, J.M. A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins. London: Seaby, 1990, p. 153.

4. Strack, Paul L. Untersuchungen Zur Römischen Reichsprägung Des Zweiten Jahrhunderts. Kohlhammer, 1937, pp. 113-18. So too Mattingly, Harold, Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, vol. IV: Antoninus Pius to Commodus. Introduction, indexes and plates. London, BMP, 1968, p. lxxiv.

5. Szaivert, Wolfgang, Die Münzprägung der Kaiser Marcus Aurelius, Lucius Verus und Commodus (161/192), Moneta Imperii Romani 18. Vienna, 1989, p. 230.

6. Mattingly, op. cit., p. lxxiv.

7. Levick, op. cit., pp. 115-18. See also Birley, Anthony R. Marcus Aurelius: A Biography. New York: Routledge, 1966, p. 114.

8. Levick, op. cit., pp. 46, 77.

9. Levick, op. cit., pp. 149.

10. Birley, op. cit., p. 114.

11. Szaivert, ibid.

12. As cited in Levick, op. cit., p. 117.

13. "Annia Cornificia Faustina Minor." Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 26 November 2023, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Annia_Cornificia_Faustina_Minor.

14. Birley, op. cit., pp. 247-48 and Levick, op. cit., p. 150.

15. Lightman, Marjorie, and Benjamin Lightman. Biographical Dictionary of Ancient Greek and Roman Women: Notable Women from Sappho to Helena. Checkmark Books, 2001, p. 82, citing Cassius Dio, Roman History, 78.16.6a. See also Levick, op. cit., pp. 150-51.

16. Levick, op. cit., p. 117. Beckmann, op. cit., pp. 112-13, citing the Historia Augusta, reports an age of death of four years of age and hence calculates a date of death of 165 CE.

Edited December 1, 2023 by Roman Collector
Insert correct photo

[shanxi]

Nice write up !

 

Here is another Dad coin.

Marcus Aurelius
AR Denar, Rome
Obv.: AVRELIVS CAESAR AVG PII F, bare head right
Rev.: TR POT XV COS III, Pietas standing left, holding child in either arm, with two more children standing at her side.
Ag, 3.42g, 17.1mm
Ref.: RIC III (A.P.) 490

 

 

and a TEMPOR FELIC Sestertius

Faustina II
Sestertius, AD 161-175
Obv.: FAVSTINA AVGVSTA, draped bust right.
Rev.: TEMPOR FELIC, Faustina standing left, holding two infants, between four girls at her feet. In field, S – C.
AE, 28.05g, 33.4 mm
Ref.: RIC 1673

 

 

[Ryro]

Wait. Faustina ll had kids? Jk. Another great write up!

Must've had some help from Venus to procreate that much!

 

[Marsyas Mike]

On 12/1/2023 at 12:56 AM, Roman Collector said:

Antoninus Pius, 138-161 CE.
Roman orichalcum sestertius, 23.46 g, 32.3 mm, 12 h.
Rome, December 158 – December 159 CE.
Obv: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P XXII, laureate head, right.
Rev: PIETATI AVG COS IIII, Pietas, standing facing, head left, holding globe in extended right hand and child on left arm; on either side of her, small girl standing, raising one hand.
Refs: RIC 1002; BMCRE 2061-62; Cohen 620; Strack 1164; RCV –.

Another great Faustina Friday, for sure. 

I'm using this opportunity to upgrade my attributions.  On this Ant. Pius sestertius, I have notes from a Coin Talk post of yours that says TRP XXII does not exist?  That it should be TRP XXIII?   Here's my post off your OP with this type, your notes - I have not tracked down the Aug. 2020 post...mine with old XXII and new XXIII attributions: 

It just occurred to me I have a sestertius similar to the OP. This is one of those Antoninus Pius sestertii that is on a broad, thin flan. Not sure what is up with this, but I have a couple of them - they run kind of light weight too:



Antoninus Pius Æ Sestertius
(c. 158-159 A.D.)
Rome Mint
ANTONINVS AVG [PIVS PP T]R P XXII (?), laureate head right / [PI]ETATI AVG COS IIII S-C, Pietas draped standing left hold ing globe and child, to left and right two small girls standing.
RIC 1002; BMC 2062.
(17.34 grams / 34 mm)

An earlier RC post had this information, which I had in my notes for this, since the XXII might be in error (also noted in the OP) - I hadn't gotten around to editing my attribution, so maybe that would be a good project today:

"Now, in terms of the inscription, Paul Dinsdale (@paulus_dinius), p. 545, writes:
It is extremely doubtful that any specimens read TR P XXII on obv., but actually read TR P XXIII with either the final ‘I’ being merged with the neck truncation, or, owing to a die flaw, the final two numerals being obscured (see illustrated details). British Museum (1867,0101.2068) = BMCRE 2061 has been tooled to read TR P XXI on obv., whilst British Museum (1872,0709.653)= BMCRE 2062 clearly reads TR P XXIII. Strack lists three specimens, including one of those from the B.M., but cites as a source of illustration a specimen in Dr Jacob Hirsch, Munich (Auction 34, Gutekunst), 5.5.1914, pl.34, 1125, which again clearly reads TR P XXIII.Cohen cites a specimen from Copenhagen–unsubstantiated by Strack. "

Roman Collector on CT Aug. 2020

Just fixed my attribution - with thanks RC for all the research I copied! 

Antoninus Pius Æ Sestertius
(Dec. 159-Dec. 160 A.D.)
Rome Mint
ANTONINVS AVG [PIVS PP T]R P XXIII, laureate head right / [PI]ETATI AVG COS IIII S-C, Pietas draped standing left holding globe and child, to left and right two small girls standing.
RIC 1031; BMCRE 2088-90.
(17.34 grams / 34 mm)

Notes: "Likely commemorates the birth of Fadilla to Faustina II; the children...are thought to represent Faustina III and Lucilla.
RIC 1002 and BMCRE 2062 are misdescribed by Mattingly in both RIC3 and BMCRE4. It is extremely doubtful that any specimens read TR P XXII on obv., but actually read TR P XXIII with the final "I" being merged with the neck"
Roman Collector - Coin Talk Nov 2020

 

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/in-thursdays-mail-an-antoninus-pius-sestertius.369979/

 

[Roman Collector]

11 hours ago, Marsyas Mike said:

Another great Faustina Friday, for sure. 

I'm using this opportunity to upgrade my attributions.  On this Ant. Pius sestertius, I have notes from a Coin Talk post of yours that says TRP XXII does not exist?  That it should be TRP XXIII?   Here's my post off your OP with this type, your notes - I have not tracked down the Aug. 2020 post...mine with old XXII and new XXIII attributions: 

It just occurred to me I have a sestertius similar to the OP. This is one of those Antoninus Pius sestertii that is on a broad, thin flan. Not sure what is up with this, but I have a couple of them - they run kind of light weight too:



Antoninus Pius Æ Sestertius
(c. 158-159 A.D.)
Rome Mint
ANTONINVS AVG [PIVS PP T]R P XXII (?), laureate head right / [PI]ETATI AVG COS IIII S-C, Pietas draped standing left hold ing globe and child, to left and right two small girls standing.
RIC 1002; BMC 2062.
(17.34 grams / 34 mm)

An earlier RC post had this information, which I had in my notes for this, since the XXII might be in error (also noted in the OP) - I hadn't gotten around to editing my attribution, so maybe that would be a good project today:

"Now, in terms of the inscription, Paul Dinsdale (@paulus_dinius), p. 545, writes:
It is extremely doubtful that any specimens read TR P XXII on obv., but actually read TR P XXIII with either the final ‘I’ being merged with the neck truncation, or, owing to a die flaw, the final two numerals being obscured (see illustrated details). British Museum (1867,0101.2068) = BMCRE 2061 has been tooled to read TR P XXI on obv., whilst British Museum (1872,0709.653)= BMCRE 2062 clearly reads TR P XXIII. Strack lists three specimens, including one of those from the B.M., but cites as a source of illustration a specimen in Dr Jacob Hirsch, Munich (Auction 34, Gutekunst), 5.5.1914, pl.34, 1125, which again clearly reads TR P XXIII.Cohen cites a specimen from Copenhagen–unsubstantiated by Strack. "

Roman Collector on CT Aug. 2020

Just fixed my attribution - with thanks RC for all the research I copied! 

Antoninus Pius Æ Sestertius
(Dec. 159-Dec. 160 A.D.)
Rome Mint
ANTONINVS AVG [PIVS PP T]R P XXIII, laureate head right / [PI]ETATI AVG COS IIII S-C, Pietas draped standing left holding globe and child, to left and right two small girls standing.
RIC 1031; BMCRE 2088-90.
(17.34 grams / 34 mm)

Notes: "Likely commemorates the birth of Fadilla to Faustina II; the children...are thought to represent Faustina III and Lucilla.
RIC 1002 and BMCRE 2062 are misdescribed by Mattingly in both RIC3 and BMCRE4. It is extremely doubtful that any specimens read TR P XXII on obv., but actually read TR P XXIII with the final "I" being merged with the neck"
Roman Collector - Coin Talk Nov 2020

 

https://www.cointalk.com/threads/in-thursdays-mail-an-antoninus-pius-sestertius.369979/

 

Yes, I ran into this very issue again when writing today's installment. When I first wrote those comments at CT, I was very swayed by Paul Dinsdale's catalogue -- because he has literally looked at dozens of specimens or more. And it's TRUE that MANY specimens read TR P XXIII with the final I merged with the neck (I think it's a single die). Moreover, the legend on the British Museum specimen has been tooled.

So, in many cases, Paul Dinsdale is right. But the more I looked at my coin, the more I was convinced mine actually reads XXII. So, I think that the TR P XXII coin DOES exist and I have an example. And I actually re-wrote my collector tag in the coin's flip to represent my change of opinion. 

 

Edited December 3, 2023 by Roman Collector

[DonnaML]

@Roman Collector, I will have to study your post more carefully to figure out if I have to revise my attributions for any of these children on coins of this period (as I have done for my Demeter/Proserpina aureus, substituting Faustina III for Lucilla). In the meantime:

Antoninus Pius dupondius with Faustina as Pietas on the reverse, together with three children probably representing the Emperor’s three granddaughters then living -- namely Marcus Aurelius’s and Faustina II’s daughters Lucilla, Annia Faustina (a/k/a Faustina III), and infant Fadilla; issued AD 159-160 before birth of Cornificia in Aug. 160:

Four children on this denarius: the two standing children have been identified as Lucilla and Annia Faustina [a/k/a Faustina III], and the two infants in Faustina’s arms as Fadilla (born AD 159) and Cornificia. The coin was probably issued to celebrate the birth of Cornificia, the then-youngest child, in August 160 AD:

Faustina II and her twin sons, b. 31 Aug 161 AD -- Titus Aurelius Fulvus Antoninus (the older twin, d. 165 or 166 AD) and Commodus -- on a pulvinar.

The same scene on a dupondius:

On this sestertius, the two infants are the male twins once again, also representing the Dioscuri (note the stars above their heads); the four girls are presumed to be Lucilla, Annia Faustina (a/k/a Faustina III), Fadilla, and Cornificia.

 

[Marsyas Mike]

4 hours ago, Roman Collector said:

Yes, I ran into this very issue again when writing today's installment. When I first wrote those comments at CT, I was very swayed by Paul Dinsdale's catalogue -- because he has literally looked at dozens of specimens or more. And it's TRUE that MANY specimens read TR P XXIII with the final I merged with the neck (I think it's a single die). Moreover, the legend on the British Museum specimen has been tooled.

So, in many cases, Paul Dinsdale is right. But the more I looked at my coin, the more I was convinced mine actually reads XXII. So, I think that the TR P XXII coin DOES exist and I have an example. And I actually re-wrote my collector tag in the coin's flip to represent my change of opinion. 

 

Thanks, RC.  Mine is XXIII (I found a die-match while looking into this).  Updates/corrections have been made!  

[Sulla80]

11 hours ago, Roman Collector said:

Yes, I ran into this very issue again when writing today's installment. When I first wrote those comments at CT, I was very swayed by Paul Dinsdale's catalogue -- because he has literally looked at dozens of specimens or more. And it's TRUE that MANY specimens read TR P XXIII with the final I merged with the neck (I think it's a single die). Moreover, the legend on the British Museum specimen has been tooled.

So, in many cases, Paul Dinsdale is right. But the more I looked at my coin, the more I was convinced mine actually reads XXII. So, I think that the TR P XXII coin DOES exist and I have an example. And I actually re-wrote my collector tag in the coin's flip to represent my change of opinion. 

 

Looks like a tough call, lots of neck-merged-ones on these coins - looking at a few of these I find it hard not to see an added "I" on your coin: "XXIII" -

Even these two that I find most ambiguous seem like they could be poorly executed "XXIII" or affected by die wear?

 

[Roman Collector]

6 minutes ago, Sulla80 said:

Looks like a tough call, lots of neck-merged-ones on these coins - looking at a few of these I find it hard not to see an added "I" on your coin: "XXIII" -

Even these two that I find most ambiguous seem like they could be poorly executed "XXIII" or affected by die wear?

 

I know. I really struggled with this.