Hostilian Billon Tetradrachm of Antioch — The Boy Emperor Who Survived His Family but Not the Plague

Own a Billon Coin from the Boy Emperor Who Survived the Battle That Killed His Father and Brother—Then Died Months Later

A genuine billon tetradrachm of Hostilian, struck at Antioch in AD 251, during one of the darkest years in Roman history. After his father, Emperor Trajan Decius, and his brother Herennius Etruscus were both killed in battle, Hostilian briefly became emperor before dying only months later, traditionally associated with the epidemic then sweeping the Roman world.

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📷 You will receive the exact coin pictured.

🦅 Features an eagle standing on a palm branch holding a victory wreath—an enduring symbol of Roman imperial authority

🏛 Struck at Antioch during the Crisis of the Third Century

🤲 A substantial billon tetradrachm weighing approximately 12.6 grams

Own This Piece of History

Why This Coin Matters

Few years in Roman history were as disastrous as AD 251.

During the Battle of Abritus, Emperor Trajan Decius and his eldest son and co-emperor, Herennius Etruscus, were both killed while fighting Gothic forces. It marked the first time a reigning Roman emperor had fallen in battle against a foreign enemy.

Hostilian, Decius’s younger son, had remained away from the campaign. Following the catastrophe, he was recognized as Augustus alongside Trebonianus Gallus during one of the most uncertain moments the Roman Empire had faced.

His reign proved tragically brief.

A devastating epidemic was sweeping the Roman world, and Hostilian died later in AD 251. Ancient tradition attributes his death to the plague, although the surviving evidence does not allow absolute certainty about the cause.

This authentic billon tetradrachm was struck at Antioch, one of the Roman Empire’s most important eastern cities and a major mint for provincial tetradrachms in the Roman East. These large silver-alloy coins served commerce throughout the eastern provinces.

The reverse depicts an eagle standing upon a palm branch while holding a victory wreath, imagery associated with Roman authority and victory. On Hostilian’s coinage, the triumphant symbolism stands in striking contrast to the military disaster, epidemic, and political instability surrounding his brief reign.

Weighing approximately 12.6 grams, this substantial provincial coin survives from one of the defining years of the Crisis of the Third Century.

Perfect For

• Collectors of Roman provincial coinage
• Crisis of the Third Century enthusiasts
• Collectors of Antioch mint coinage
• Students of Roman military and imperial history
• Anyone looking for a rare and historically significant ancient coin

What You’ll Receive

• The exact Hostilian billon tetradrachm pictured
• Civilization: Roman Empire
• Emperor: Hostilian (AD 251)
• Century: 3rd Century AD
• Mint: Antioch
• Denomination: Billon Tetradrachm
• Weight: Approximately 12.6 grams
• Guaranteed authentic

Continue the Story

The Crisis of the Third Century produced some of Rome’s most fascinating rulers and coinage. Each coin tells the story of an empire struggling to survive invasion, epidemic disease, economic pressure, and political upheaval.

Explore our other Roman coins to discover the emperors, battles, and turning points that shaped the ancient world.

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• Carefully sourced and verified
• 30-day return policy
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Learn More

Continue the story in the Kinzer Coins Journal: Collecting the Coins of Trajan Decius AD 249–251 · The Emperor Who Tried to Restore Old Rome.