Annia Galeria Faustina Minor, or Faustina the Younger, was the daughter of Emperor Antoninus Pius and Faustina the Elder. She married Marcus Aurelius in AD 145 and was given the title Augusta in 147. A beloved empress and mother to at least thirteen children, including the future Emperor Commodus, Faustina played a significant role in imperial family life and public image during the Antonine dynasty. She was deified after her death in AD 176 and celebrated as Diva Faustina Pia. Coins struck in her honor often depict traditional Roman goddesses and virtues, like Juno, reflecting both her public image and the cultural values of Rome’s elite women.
 
The Coin’s Journey
Struck in Rome (After AD 174)
Your coin was born in the heart of the empire—Rome—during the final years of Faustina the Younger’s life. Struck in bronze, this impressive sestertius bore the empress’s serene portrait on one side and Juno Regina, goddess of marriage and women, on the other. At over 27 grams and 33 mm across, it was one of the largest and most valuable denominations in daily Roman commerce.
This coin wasn’t just currency—it was imperial propaganda. It linked Faustina to the divine Juno, reinforcing her public image as the moral and maternal anchor of Rome during her husband Marcus Aurelius’s challenging reign.
 
In Circulation – Life in the Roman Empire
Newly minted, your coin may have been distributed through military pay or state spending, handed to soldiers returning from the frontiers, or to merchants supplying Rome’s markets. A sestertius like this could buy:
2–3 loaves of fresh bread
A jug of local wine
A ticket to the public baths
A hot meal in a tavern along the Via Appia
Carried in a leather purse or stored in a merchant’s strongbox, the coin passed through many hands—veterans, traders, artisans, and townspeople—each leaving faint traces of wear that marked the passage of time.
It may have traveled beyond Rome itself, perhaps making its way across the empire’s western provinces, eventually reaching the fertile regions of Hispania.
 
Forgotten and Buried by Time
At some point, this sestertius vanished from use. It may have been buried for safekeeping, lost during trade, or stashed away during a time of unrest and never recovered. For centuries, it lay beneath layers of earth, untouched by light, hidden while empires rose and fell.
 
Rediscovery in Murcia, Spain – The Nobleman’s Estate
In the late 1800s, your coin resurfaced in an unexpected place: the estate of a wealthy Spanish nobleman in Murcia. A passionate antiquarian and early numismatist, he spent decades acquiring Roman and Byzantine coins through auctions, archaeological contacts, and private sales.
Meticulously organized, the coins were kept in leather satchels and wooden cases, labeled and stored in the upper rooms of his villa. There they remained—untouched—after his passing. For generations, the collection sat forgotten in a sealed attic.
 
Rediscovered in the 21st Century
During renovations in the early 2000s, caretakers stumbled upon the long-forgotten hoard: over a thousand coins, remarkably well-preserved. Among them was your Faustina sestertius, its aged patina concealing but not erasing the strength of its imagery.
Experts examined, documented, and carefully conserved the coin using museum-grade techniques, stabilizing it with Renaissance Wax and preserving the story it carries from ancient Rome.
 
Preserved for the Future
Now protected in a museum-grade display case, your coin is no longer just a relic—it’s a storyteller. Accompanied by a Certificate of Authenticity and a detailed dossier, it spans centuries of history, from the marble streets of imperial Rome to the noble collections of 19th-century Spain, and into your hands today.
From Faustina’s reign to the Murcia Collection, your coin’s journey is truly extraordinary.