Dupondius - Vespasian FIDES PVBLICA S C, Fides

The FIDES PVBLICA ("Public Trust") reverse type was a deliberate political choice in the aftermath of civil war. Vespasian spent much of his reign rehabilitating the Roman state's creditworthiness — financially and symbolically — after the catastrophic Year of the Four Emperors had shattered confidence in both the treasury and the principate itself. The slogan was not rhetorical decoration; Vespasian had inherited a deficit Suetonius estimated at 40 billion sesterces and made no secret of the fiscal emergency.

RIC II.1 1211 dates to the final year of Vespasian's life, minted in Rome under the auspices of the senate, as the S C mark confirms.