The Palace and Park by Phillips, Forbes, Latham, Owen, Scharf, and Shenton

249-251. [Born at Bubalia, in Lower Pannonia, A.D. 201. Died near Abricium, A.D. 251. Aged 50.] The first of a long line of monarchs who traced an Illyrian ancestry. In A.D. 245, he was entrusted with an important command on the Danube. Shortly afterwards he was ordered by the Emperor Philippus to calm the rebellious soldiery of Mœsia; but, on attempting to pacify them, he was offered, with a sword to his breast, the alternative of instant death or the purple. Choosing the purple, he was opposed in the field by Philippus, who fell. After reigning thirty months, he met his death in battle against the Goths. During his short rule, the Christians were bitterly persecuted. It is difficult to form a just estimate of this Emperor’s character. He has been described as “most amiable, highly accomplished, mild, affable, and brave.” He has also been stigmatized as a monster of iniquity. [From the gallery of the Emperors in the Capitoline Museum at Rome.]