Ancients - Happy Birthday to AP and Me

This is an auspicious day (ask any augur). Today is my 65th birthday (man I'm gettin' old) and it is Antonius Pius' 1,876th birthday (talk about gettin' old). So I thought it would be good to start a thread to honor AP. Even though I just showed this first coin in another thread, I think since the reverse looks like a birthday cake it is appropriate to show once again:

ANTONIUS PIUS AE Sestertius
OBVERSE: IDIVVS ANTONINVS, bare head right
REVERSE: CONSECRATIO, four tiered funeral pyre surmounted by Antoninus in a quadriga, SC in ex.
Struck at Rome 161 AD
25g, 31mm
RIC 1266 (Marcus Aurelius), BMC 880 (Marcus Aurelius), C 354


ANTONIUS PIUS AR Didrachm
OBVERSE: ANTWNEI-NOC CEBACTOC, laureate head right
REVERSE: YPAT B PAT PATR, Helios, holding globe and sceptre, standing atop Mt. Argaeus; * in exergue
Struck at Caesaria, Cappadocia, 139 AD
6.2g, 21mm
Syd 301c

Born as the only child of Titus Aurelius Fulvus, consul in 89 whose family came from Nemausus (modern Nimes).

On his accession, Antoninus' name became "Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus". One of his first acts as Emperor was to persuade the Senate to grant divine honors to Hadrian, which they had at first refused; his efforts to persuade the Senate to grant these honors is the most likely reason given for his title of Pius (dutiful in affection; compare pietas). Two other reasons for this title are that he would support his aged father-in-law with his hand at Senate meetings, and that he had saved those men that Hadrian, during his period of ill-health, had condemned to death.

Antoninus built temples, theaters, and mausoleums, promoted the arts and sciences, and bestowed honours and financial rewards upon the teachers of rhetoric and philosophy. Antoninus made few initial changes when he became emperor, leaving intact as far as possible the arrangements instituted by Hadrian.

There are no records of any military related acts in his time in which he participated. One modern scholar has written "It is almost certain not only that at no time in his life did he ever see, let alone command, a Roman army, but that, throughout the twenty-three years of his reign, he never went within five hundred miles of a legion".

There were several military disturbances throughout the Empire in his time; nevertheless, Antoninus was virtually unique among emperors in that he dealt with these crises without leaving Italy once during his reign, but instead dealt with provincial matters of war and peace through their governors or through imperial letters to the cities such as Ephesus (of which some were publicly displayed). This style of government was highly praised by his contemporaries and by later generations.

Two days before his death, the biographer reports, Antoninus was at his ancestral estate at Lorium, in Etruria, about twelve miles (19 km) from Rome. He ate Alpine cheese at dinner quite greedily. In the night he vomited; he had a fever the next day. The day after that, 7 March 161, he summoned the imperial council, and passed the state and his daughter to Marcus. The emperor gave the keynote to his life in the last word that he uttered when the tribune of the night-watch came to ask the password—"aequanimitas" (equanimity). He then turned over, as if going to sleep, and died. His death closed out the longest reign since Augustus (surpassing Tiberius by a couple of months).

 

Log in or Sign up to hide this ad.

Happy B-Day to you and AP!
A man dying from eating to much cheese... really?

 

Kind of a depressing birthday cake, a funeral pyre, huh?

Congrats on the birthday. Mine is coming up in a few days. We are almost reversed, I will be 46.

 

Happy birthday Bing

You're only as old as how you feel, and you do not sound that old

 

Happy birthday, JW.

I have many of AP.


Antoninus Pius, (138A.D. - (161 A.D)
Billon Tetradrachm
O: AVT K T AIL ADR ANTWNINOC CEV CEB, bare head right.
R: L - B (year 2), Dikaiosyne standing left, holding scales and cornucopiae.
Alexandria mint, 138 - 139 A.D
12.7g
24mm
Milne 1576


Antoninus Pius (138 - 161 A.D.)
Æ Dupondius
O: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P IMP II, Radiate bust right, slight drapery.
R: TR POT XIX COS IIII - Annona seated right, holding cornucopia in both hands; modius at feet to right. S C' below, in exergue.
11.7g
24mm

Cf. RIC III 956 (As); cf. BMCRE pg. 337, * (same) Unrecorded as a dupondius?


Antoninus Pius (138 - 161 A.D.)
Struck Under Marcus Aurelius
O: DIVVS ANTONINVS, bare draped bust right.
R: CONSECRATIO, funeral pyre of four tiers with quadriga on top.
Rome Mint, 161 - 180 A.D.
18mm
3.2g
RIC III M. Aurelius 438

 

Happy Birthday !!!!

 

Happy birthday, Bing!

Clearly I need more and better A-Pi coins. Here are a couple of his tetradrachms from Alexandria, Egypt.

 

ANTONIUS PIUS AR Denarius
OBVERSE: ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P IMP II, laureate head right
REVERSE: TR POT XIX COS IIII, Annona standing left with corn ears & modius set on prow
Struck at Rome 155/6AD
3.1g, 17mm
RIC 249, C 983


ANTONIUS PIUS AE 25
OBVERSE: AVTO KAI TI AIL ADRI ANTWNINOC CEEBV, laureate head right
REVERSE: IOVLIEWN TWN KAI LAODIKEWN, turreted and draped bust of Tyche right; QE-HP P in fields
Struck at Laodikeia ad Mare, 140-141 AD 9.28g, 25mm
SNG Copenhagen 350 var, BMC 57

 

Happy Birthday, Bing and A-Pi!

I just celebrated my son's second birthday earlier this week .

We have a (Chinese) custom here where on a child's first birthday we lay out a variety of objects before him or her. The object or objects the child picks up is supposed to give an indication of their future interests or career. Some traditional items include pens (writer), books (scholar), abacuses (accountant), measuring tapes or rulers (architect), gold, eggs, and toys.

At my son's zhuazhou ceremony last year, with an array of 12 tempting items set out in front of him, this is what he picked...



I'm figuring there's at least some chance he's either going to be a coin collector or a pretty decent emperor .

 

I think there could be a decent future as emperor. Not much money to be made as a coin collector. Happy Birthday to your son. He's a Virgo so he is gifted (I think).

 

Thanks! As a Virgo myself I don't need any convincing... on the other hand, his mother has some doubts.

 

Happy Birthday Bing! And happy B-Day to AP.

Antoninus Pius; 142-144 AD
Silver Denarius; 18mm/2.6g
OBV: ANTONINVS AVG; PIVS Bust Laureate, Facing Right
REV: TR POT COS III; Pax Standing Left holding olive branch and cornucopia
(RIC II 51a)

 

Happy Birthday jw,hope you are having a great day and i hope you live till your 1876 years young. here's a cake coin for you, now go buy a storm of coins today my Friend..

 

happy birthday JW and AP......let me have a piece of that awesome cake ENG got you!

i only have one AP coin...shame on me.

 

Happy b-day, Bing!

"[He] passed the state and his daughter to Marcus."

Take it easy on the cheese and don't give your country or your children away too hastily ;-)

 

Thank you all for the birthday wishes.

I liked the statement:

e·qua·nim·i·ty
ˌēkwəˈnimitē,ˌekwə-/
noun

1. mental calmness, composure, and evenness of temper, especially in a difficult situation.

 

Great write up and a Happy Birthday to you Bing.

 

He is a bit older than that - he ascended the throne 1,876 years ago but was born in 86 AD, 1,928 years ago.

 

Happy birthday, Antoninus! (or Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus, as he was titled upon his ascension) I always ensure I have his birthday marked off on my calendar - it's no coincidence that I keep him as my avatar coin, as he is certainly my favorite emperor.

I've posted my mini-article on him before but it is worth repeating on his 1,928th birthday.



Antoninus Pius is remembered by history as a kind, just, and intelligent emperor. Having held the title for twenty-three years, the longest reign since that of Augustus, he had a great deal of time in office to make a lasting mark on Roman society. Unlike most of his predecessors, his legacy was not focused on military conquests; rather, his reign is often considered the most peaceful in the entire history of Rome. This was partly due to his preference for diplomatic solutions to conflict, dealing with issues predominately without the wide-scale battles of the other emperors.

This unique approach can likely be attributed to his upbringing. He was born into a wealthy family as the only child of Titus Aurelius Fulvius in Lanuvium, a city to the southeast of Rome, on September 19th, AD 86. His father and paternal grandfather died when he was young, resulting in him being raised by his maternal grandfather, Gaenus Arrius Antoninus, who was known to be a man of integrity and culture. Combining the wealth of both of his families, he became one of the richest men in Rome. Antoninus married Annia Galeria Faustina the Elder, a beautiful, wise woman who dedicated her life to caring for the less fortunate throughout the Empire.

Antoninus Pius was an “Adopted Emperor”, where succession was a conscious decision made by the current emperor based on merit rather than a birthright, which differed from the approach taken for the first Twelve Caesars. Antoninus established himself as a competent leader, moving up the ranks from quaestor, then praetor, and finally consul, after which Hadrian named him one of the four high judges with full jurisdiction over Italy. He was then given a proconsulship in Asia, followed by him becoming a member of the Imperial Consul, as a personal consultant to Hadrian.

After the death of Hadrian’s first adopted son, Lucius Aelius, on February 25th, AD 138, Antoninus was formally adopted by Hadrian when Antoninus was 51 years old. It was agreed that he would be made Emperor with the provision that he would in turn adopt Marcus Aurelius, the son of his wife’s brother, and Lucius Verus, the son of Aelius. Antoninus agreed and his two adopted sons would eventually succeed him as co-emperors following his death on March 7th, 161.

Upon taking office, his full title became “Imperator Caesar Titus Aelius Hadrianus Antoninus Augustus Pontifex Maximus”. Immediately after his ascension, Antoninus requested that the Senate deify Hadrian, to which they initially refused. Antoninus’ persistence in ensuring the divine rights of Hadrian, as well as the efforts he made to support his elderly father-in-law and to pardon wrongfully accused men who were condemned to death, resulted in the Senate bestowing the title of “Pius”, meaning “dutiful and respectful”.

He was involved in several projects, which included performing repairs to the Colosseum, the baths of Ostia, and aqueducts at Antium, as well as building a temple in the Roman Forum in his wife’s honor upon her death in 141 AD.

His humanitarian efforts were significant, and he was loved by the Roman people, who had become far too familiar with emperors stealing and imposing excessive taxes to fund their own eccentricities. Antoninus was a level-headed man, not given to excess, in addition to a possessing a sincere desire for the well-being of his subjects. He protected Christians from persecution and used large portions of his extensive private treasury to assist distressed areas of his empire. While other emperors were quick to judge and resorted to executing those who appeared to conspire against them, Pius instead used these events to demonstrate his understanding and leniency.

While Antoninus was known for his tight use of state funds, he did host a magnificent series of games, celebrating the nine-hundredth anniversary of the founding of Rome. He imported expensive animals, including a great number of giraffes, tigers, elephants, and crocodiles. This made him very popular with his subjects, but paying for it required him to debase the Roman currency by decreasing the purity of the denarius, dropping its silver weight from 2.88 to 2.68 grams.

Antoninus instituted some groundbreaking philosophies which have shaped our world today. He did not consider the often-rigid law immutable and instead used his own interpretations of equality to avoid unnecessarily harsh punishment. He passed laws to grant citizenship to slaves and to ensure their fair treatment, especially for children. He also created the concepts of “innocent until proven guilty” and that the trial of an accused person must be held where the crime had been committed. He created a charity named “Puellae Faustinianae” (Girls of Faustina), which helped orphaned girls. Additionally, he improved the grain supply to Rome, and lent money to the people and troops at the very low rate of 4%. He was a tall, handsome, well-spoken man whose actions were very well-fitting to his promises.

Unfortunately, Antoninus Pius died in his sleep at the age of 74 after what is believed to have been an accidental case of severe food poisoning. His successor Marcus Aurelius spoke very highly of Antoninus: “Remember his qualities, so that when your last hour comes your conscience may be as clear as his.” Appropriately, his last spoken word was when his guard asked for the password – “aequanimitas”, meaning equanimity – mental calmness and composure.

Struck in high relief, the obverse of this particular coin shows Antoninus Pius bearded in very fine style, draped and from the right. There are slight die cracks on the obverse, meaning the die was breaking while the coin was being struck, which is a good explanation for why this particular obverse is extremely rare.

The reverse type shows Antoninus as Romulus advancing right in military dress, holding a spear with points at both ends and trophy over his shoulder. This reverse has been used on sestertii where it is labeled “ROMVLO AVGVSTO” – “To the Augustan Romulus” and may be interpreted as depicting Antoninus as the re-founder of Rome, following in the footsteps of Augustus, marking a new era of Roman success and morality. Interestingly, several experts have commented that the portrait on the reverse bears some similarity to Trajan – Hadrian’s adoptive father – possibly alluding to the familial efforts of the Adoptive Emperors to improve Rome.

This coin is featured in the Calico reference guide (1650) as well as part of the Biaggi collection (coin number 761). The Biaggi collection featured an extensive set of Roman aurei, an almost complete set of every design from every emperor, with many coins being the finest known of their type. Leo Biaggi di Blasys formed the majority of the collection prior to 1950, and it was eventually sold by his surviving family in 1971.

138-161 AD. Aureus, 7.30g (6h). Rome, 140-4 AD. Obv: ANTONINVS - AVG PIVS P P Bust laureate, draped right, seen from side. Rx: TR - POT - COS III Emperor as Romulus advancing right in military dress, holding spear with points at both ends and trophy over shoulder. BM 238. C. 909; RIC 37, 906 var., Strack 71. Biaggi 761 (this coin). Calicó 1650 (this coin). Beautiful style, high relief portrait. Mint State.

Here are two other aurei of his which I used to own as well:

 

Yep. You found me out. I had to go back and use a calculator to see where I went wrong. Happy 1928th Birthday to AP.

Nice write up AJ.