This antoninianus depicts Philip II who, as a child, became co-ruler with his father Philip I as emperor of Rome. Naming children as co-regents was a common practice in the Roman imperial period as a way both to assure the people of the stability of dynastic succession and to groom the future emperor. In this case, Philip II became Caesar at age six and Augustus (co-ruler) at age nine. This coin depicts Philip as a young boy and marks him as Caesar, indicating that it was minted sometime between his becoming Caesar and becoming Augustus, 244-247 CE. The reverse depicts Philip II in military garb holding a globe in his right hand and a military standard in his left hand and uses a title for princes dating back to the Julio-Claudians. This coin was meant to show the young Philip II as a viable successor who would continue the military might of the empire. However, upon the death of Philip I at the hands of his successor Decius, Philip II was also killed, thereby ending his family’s promised stable succession. Katherine Brown 2011.