ROMAN BRITAIN. Antoninus Pius. A.D. 138-161. Æ as. 10.8 gm. 22 mm. Rome mint (or possibly mint in Britain). Struck A.D. 154-155. His laureate head right; ANTONINVS AVG PIVS P P TR P XVIII / Britannia seated left on rock, resting head on hand in attitude of mourning (RIC suggests sorrow caused by the sadness brought to the land by rebelling against Rome); large round shield and eagle-tipped scepter to left; BRITANNIA COS IIII S C. RIC III 934. S. 646. Good Very Fine; brown patina; crisply struck. Scarce.

Purchased from Harlan Berk.

The Standard Catalog of British Coins writes that coins of this type are found in such quantity on Romano-British sites that it suggests that they may have been minted at a temporary mint in Britain, using dies brought from Rome. They also note that "Many...are carelessly struck on inadequate flans." This piece is notably better-than-average