TYPE Roman Empire, Lucilla, wife of Lucius Verus (161-9 AD), silver denarius DESCRIPTION . Obv: Draped bust to right, legend: LUCILLA AVGVSTA Rev: Hilaritas standing left, holding long palm branch and cornucopiae, legend HILARITAS REFERENCE: RSC 28 GRADING: VF, toned ORDER INFO: R1973, $100 The first female of the many children of M. Aurelius and Faustina Jr. - and one of the few that survived childhood - Lucilla was betrothed very young to her father's ruling colleague, L. Verus, and likewise married and widowed early. Even though her three children ended up playing apparently no significant historical role, her political involvement didn't end there; in fact, the recent prominent motion picture Gladiator - despite an obvious license in historical synthesis - vividly underscores that point. Her true and brutal end, however, came shortly after the accesion of her ruthless brother Commodus, following an unsuccessful plot against him in which both her and his wife Crispina were implicated; it took another 10 years before finally a successful coup, through the hands of a gladiator, disposed of the emperor.