Aureus of Faustina II c. 147 - 150

Editor: Here we have an Aureus of Faustina II, a gold coin. The damage around the edges really highlights its age, but the portraits are still so clear. What do you make of the composition? Curator: The piece compels us to consider the structural contrast between the idealized portraiture of Faustina and the implicit commentary on the wear of time seen in the coin's fragmented edges. Observe how the incuse lettering frames the portrait, almost functioning as a secondary, textural border. Editor: That's a great point! I hadn't considered the lettering as a frame within a frame. Curator: Indeed. Such detailing in Roman coinage offers an opportunity to analyze not just artistic skill but also the semiotics of power and legacy embedded in these objects. Does this change your perspective? Editor: It does. Seeing it as a study of power through structure is really interesting. Curator: Precisely. There's always more to uncover.