Herennia Cupressenia Etruscilla was already married to Traianus Decius when he became emperor in 249 (until 251) and she was made augusta. Herennia is said to have descended from an ancient Etruscan family. Nothing else is known about her, not even the year of her death.
Herennia Etruscilla was empress at a time, when civil wars, barbarian attacks and a severe economic crisis threatened the Roman Empire. Her husband was a follower of the old Roman religion and convinced that the upheavels of the time were not only caused by men, but also by the gods. He thus postulated that every citizen of the empire had to sacrifice and pray to the gods for the well being of the empire.
This coin issues a call for virtue: it connects the empress on the obverse with Pudicitia, the personification of chasteness and modesty.