Column of Antoninus Pius

220, Lot: 466. Estimate $200. Sold for $410. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Divus Antoninus Pius. Died AD 161. Æ Sestertius (32mm, 30.25 g, 1h). Rome mint. Struck under Marcus Aurelius, AD 161. Bare head right / Column surmounted by statue of Pius holding eagle and sceptre. RIC III 1269 (Aurelius). VF, dark brown, almost black, patina with some light deposits.

The reverse depicts the column of the divine Antoninus Pius, the shaft and base of which survive. The latter, now in the Vatican, employs both Classical and plebeian styles and marks a transition in imperially sponsored monuments.