Gallienus (AD 253-268). Billon antoninianus, Rome mint, c. AD 260-268.

Gallienus (AD 253-268). Billon antoninianus, Rome mint, c. AD 260-268. 3.30 g, 21 mm, die axis 6 h. Obverse GALLIENVS AVG – radiate, draped and cuirassed bust of Gallienus right. Reverse SPES PVBLICA – Spes standing left, holding a flower in the extended right hand and raising the hem of her robe with the left. RIC V-1 (Gallienus) 294; Cohen 975; Göbl Mir 623.

The type proclaims the “Hope of the State” during the protracted crises of Gallienus’ reign, when repeated usurpations and external invasions threatened imperial cohesion. The emperor’s coinage frequently invoked abstract virtues such as Spes, Pax and Salus to reassure a population confronting military and economic instability while the central government strove to re-establish control over break-away provinces in Gaul and the East.