provoked Vespasian into reviving the obsolete penal laws against this profession as a precautionary measure. Only Helvidius Priscus was put to death after he repeatedly affronted the Emperor with studied insults which Vespasian initially tried to ignore. The philosopher Demetrius was banished to an island and when Vespasian heard that Demetrius was still criticizing him, he sent the exiled philosopher the message: "You are doing everything to force me to kill you, but I do not slay a barking dog." According to Suetonius, Vespasian "bore the frank language of his friends, the quips of pleaders, and the impudence of the philosophers with the greatest patience". He was also noted for his benefactions to the people. Much money was spent on public works and the restoration and beautification of Rome: the Temple of Peace (also known as the Forum of Vespasian), new public baths and the great show piece, the Colosseum. Vespasian debased the denarius during his reign, reducing the silver purity from 93.5% to 90%. The silver weight dropped from 2.97 grams to 2.87 grams. In modern Romance languages, urinals are named after him (for example, vespasiano in Italian, and vespasienne in French), probably in reference to a tax he placed on urine collection (useful due to its ammoniac content; see Pay toilet). Family and personal life Ancestors and relatives His paternal grandfather, Titus Flavius Petro, became the first to distinguish himself, rising to the rank of centurion and fighting at Pharsalus for Pompey in 48 BC. Subsequently, he became a debt collector. Petro's son, Titus Flavius Sabinus, worked as a customs official in the province of Asia and became a moneylender on a small scale among the Helvetii. He earned a reputation as a scrupulous and honest "tax-farmer". Sabinus married up in status, to Vespasia Polla, whose father had risen to the rank of prefect of the camp and whose brother became a Senator. Sabinus and Vespasia had three children, the eldest of whom, a girl, died in infancy. The elder boy, Titus Flavius Sabinus, entered public life and pursued the cursus honorum. Vespasian on the other hand, seemed far less likely to be successful, initially not wishing to pursue high public office. He followed in his brother's footsteps when driven to it by his mother's taunting. Marriage and children During this period he married Flavia Domitilla, the daughter of Flavius Liberalis from Ferentium and formerly the mistress of