Owner Comments:
Compared to her husband Augustus Gordian III, Tranquillina (215? – after 244 AD) infrequently appears on imperial coinage, although her provincial issues, such as this coin struck in Thrace, are relatively less scarce. The obverse depicts the charming imagery of the imperial couple’s confronting busts. Their expressions suggest devotion to one another, and, by extension, their pietas or loyalty to family, state, and the gods. Tranquillina's distinctive coiffure - her wavy hair gathered into a braid and pulled up from the back of her neck to her forehead - inspired future Empresses and other noblewomen across the Empire and surrounding realms.
The coin’s reverse depicts Apollo, a popular deity for over a millennium (dating back to Mycenaean Greece). Apollo was a complex god, representing diverse aspects such as truth and prophecy, poetry, healing, the sun, and, especially, music. True to form, the verso features Apollo’s famous lyre (a present from Hermes). Apollo holds a plectrum (a pick), demonstrating the divinity is ready to play.
Tranquillina’s father, Timesitheus, was appointed as Gordian III’s Praetorian Prefect in 241 AD. Around that time, Tranquillina concomitantly wedded Gordian III and became Augusta of the Roman Empire. Evidently, Tranquillina accompanied her husband and father on the Persian campaign, wherein the latter died in 243 AD under mysterious circumstances. The imperial marriage lasted until Gordian III’s death in 244 AD, and did not result in any children.
Coin Details: ROMAN PROVINCIAL, TRANQUILLINA and GORDIAN III 238-244 AD, Thrace, Mesembria, Æ (26mm, 13.12 g, 1h), NGC Grade: XF, Strike: 5/5, Surface: 4/5, Obverse: Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Gordian and draped bust of Tranquillina, wearing stephane, facing one another, AVT K M ANT GORDIANOC AVG CEB TPANKVLLINA, Reverse: Apollo standing left, holding plectrum and resting hand upon lyre set upon column to right, MECAMBP-IANΩN, References: Karayotov II – (O20/R15 [unlisted die combination]); Varbanov 4175-6 var. (obv. legend).