Born in A.D. 86 Antoninus was made Caesar after Hadrian’s preferred heir Aelius died in A.D. 138. He succeeded to the throne that year and earned the title ‘Pius’ (which means dutiful or respectful) for two reasons. Firstly, by threatening the Senate with resignation if they did not deify Hadrian. Secondly, as Hadrian had wanted, he adopted young Lucius Verus and Marcus Aurelius at the start of his reign. What makes him so unusual is that he presided over the most peaceful reign of any emperor, governing well and wisely as a compassionate ruler. He set up charities, built public works for his people, and brought in laws such as ‘innocent until proven guilty’; some historians have argued it could be the greatest collective human happiness in a period of time in history. In Britain, he caused the ‘Antonine Wall’ to be built from the Firth of Forth to the Firth of Clyde, north of Hadrian’s Wall, to keep the Picts out. We offer Silver Denarius of Antoninus Pius in a Very Fine condition, showing his laureate head on the obverse and various reverses.
