Marcus Aurelius AE Sestertius, Rome AD 163–164, Genius, RIC III 875 Rare

Marcus Aurelius; Sestertius; bronze; reign 161–180, struck 163–164 at Rome; 24.90 g; 33 mm. Obv. M AVREL ANTONINVS AVG P M; laureate bust right. Rev. TR P XVIII IMP II COS III S C; Genius nude standing left, holding patera in right hand and corn-ears in left; lighted altar to left; S C in field. Broad, centrally struck flan with full legends; dark green patina; rare issue. RIC III 875.

Struck during the early years of Marcus Aurelius’s reign and the Parthian War conducted under the co-emperor Lucius Verus, this sestertius is precisely dated by the titulature TR P XVIII, IMP II, COS III to 163–164. The reverse type shows a state Genius performing a libation beside an altar and holding grain ears, a design linked to public vows and the prosperity of the Roman people and grain supply while the eastern campaigns were underway; S C denotes senatorial authority over the bronze coinage.