Here's the coin of the month...

Last month's (ha!) Coin of the Month was an Emperor, so let's swtich back again to those well quaffed, er, I mean well coiffed Roman empresses.

Marcia Otacilia Severa was the wife of Philip I, and the mother of Philip II. We don't know when or where she was born, and we don't know if she lived past their deaths in 249 at the hands of Trajan Decius.

Otacilia had a good variety of coins minted during her five year reign as an empress, but this one is probably the most commonly found today.

Weighing in at 3.1 grams, this can be identified as an antoninianus by the crescent under her draped bust. This is true for empresses of the period. A similar coin for an emperor would have a "radiate" crown.

Compared to last month's coin, this one is quite silvered. Standards for the coinage had not declined much by this point. According to Sear's Roman Coins and Their Values (vol. 3, 2005), this coin was minted in 247 in Rome. After years of collecting I still find it amazing that an undated coin from over 1700 years ago can be dated to the year!

The obverse inscription reads OTACIL SEVERA AVG. This is the shortest of the three obverse inscriptions found on her coinage.

The reverse inscription reads CONCORDIA AVGG, concord (harmony) among the augusti. Concord is seated left, holding a patera and cornucopia.