Hadrian Sestertius, RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

In the monetary system of the early second century AD, the sestertius stood as the paramount large bronze denomination of the Roman world, functioning both as an everyday vehicle for substantial commercial payments and as the most prominent public canvas for imperial communications. Struck from orichalcum, a golden-toned copper-zinc alloy valued more highly than pure copper, the sestertius was tariffed at one-fourth of a silver denarius or four copper asses. Because of its generous physical diameter and substantial flan weight, typically centering around twenty-five to twenty-eight grams during this period, the sestertius offered Roman authorities an expansive surface for intricate pictorial compositions and lengthy epigraphic programs. When Hadrian took power in August 117 AD, the Rome mint was tasked with immediately reassuring the Senate, the plebs, and the military of the constitutional regularity of the transition. High-value brass issues such as RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 were struck in significant volume to pay special accession donatives and facilitate state distributions. In contrast to small silver coins, whose restricted fields forced extreme abbreviation of imperial messaging, the sestertius served as an accessible civic proclamation that circulated freely across Italy and the western provinces, anchoring the new ruler's prestige in traditional Roman monetary forms.

Production Standards and Minting

The entire production run of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 was carried out by the principal imperial mint at Rome, which possessed the institutional capacity, die-engraving talent, and metallurgic facilities necessary to strike large orichalcum flans at high relief. The manufacture of sestertii in 117 AD employed carefully prepared bronze blanks cast in composite molds before being struck hot between hand-cut iron dies. Die-cutters at the Rome mint adhered to traditional six o'clock or twelve o'clock axial orientations, producing regular circular flans with beveled edges characteristic of early second-century urban production. The zinc content of the orichalcum used in these early Hadrianic sestertii generally ranged between fifteen and twenty percent, which imparted a bright, brassy finish designed to distinguish the denomination visually from reddish copper asses and middle bronzes. Weight control across individual specimens was regulated al marco rather than al pezzo, meaning that batches were calibrated to yield a fixed count of coins per Roman pound rather than guaranteeing identical weight for every piece. While individual specimens fluctuate according to natural mint tolerance, wear, and subsequent corrosion, the family average conforms closely to the established Trajanic standard for the imperial sestertius.

Obverse Portraiture and Iconography

The obverse of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 introduces the official imperial image of the new ruler to the capital. Hadrian is rendered in profile facing right, wearing a laurel wreath tied at the nape of the neck with fluttering ribbon ends. The portrait belongs to the early accession stylistic group, sometimes termed the adoption or accession portrait type, which exhibits substantial artistic continuity with the vigorous, heroic realism of late Trajanic portraiture. The emperor's features are characterized by his distinctive curly hair, prominent brow, straight nose, and short, trimmed beard, a stylistic departure from the clean-shaven norms of the preceding Flavian and Trajanic eras that would soon become the definitive aesthetic of second-century Roman statuary. The bust is depicted with a bare chest, though fine sculptural detailing reveals traces of drapery arranged over the far left shoulder, conveying an active, heroic bearing. Engravers at the Rome mint captured the energetic countenance of a seasoned military commander in his early forties, projecting physical vitality and imperial dignity to counter contemporary rumors concerning his political vulnerability.

Reverse Typology and Successional Symbolism

The reverse of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 presents an extraordinary tableau of political legitimation: two togate figures stand facing each other, jointly grasping a globe between them. On the right, the deified Trajan stands turned leftward, bestowing the spherical emblem of universal dominion upon Hadrian, who stands on the left turned rightward to receive it. Both figures are executed with careful attention to ceremonial posture, wearing draped togas that underscore their civic, constitutional roles rather than martial commands. By depicting Trajan as physically handing the cosmic globe to his successor, the composition provides an unequivocal visual rebuttal to claims that Hadrian's adoption had been orchestrated post-mortem by Empress Plotina. The globe signifies the vast expanse of the Roman world, whose orderly governance is safely transferred across generations. In the lower field, the letters S C appear prominently in the exergue, signifying Senatus Consulto, the formal decree of the Senate sanctioning the emission of base-metal coinage and affirming the institutional consensus underlying the new reign.

Epigraphic Program and Titulature

The epigraphic structure of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 is among the most elaborate of Hadrian's entire reign, wrapping continuously across both faces of the coin. The obverse legend reads IMP CAES DIVI TRAIAN AVG F TRAIAN HADRIAN OPT AVG GER, an extraordinary accumulation of titles that translates to Imperator Caesar, Son of the Deified Trajan Augustus, Trajan Hadrian Optimus Augustus Germanicus. Here, Hadrian explicitly claims the parentage of Divus Trajan, adopts Trajan's own name and the honorary epithets Optimus and Germanicus, and embeds his identity within the victorious lineage of his predecessor. The reverse legend continues without interruption: DAC PARTHICO P M TR P COS P P, expanding to Dacicus Parthicus, Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate, Consul, Pater Patriae. The inclusion of the triumphal cognomina Dacicus and Parthicus reinforces the glory of Trajan's eastern and northern campaigns, while Pontifex Maximus, the tribunician power, the consulship, and the title Father of the Country denote the full constitutional prerogatives assumed upon accession. Within months, Hadrian pruned these verbose honorifics, dropping the excessive Trajanic epithets to craft a leaner personal titulature, which makes this initial 117 AD legend formula a diagnostic hallmark of early accession issues.

Typological Classification and Chronological Placement

In the modern revision of the imperial corpus presented in Roman Imperial Coinage Volume II, Part 3 (second edition), this issue is catalogued under number 30 within the opening series of Rome mint sestertii struck between August and December 117 AD. It corresponds to entries in Paul Strack's foundational 1933 classification of Hadrianic coinage and to early entries in Harold Mattingly's British Museum catalogue. The tight chronological window for RIC 30 is established through Hadrian's consular notation COS, which reflects his first consulship held prior to the imperial purple in 108 AD. By early 118 AD, Hadrian entered his second consulship, requiring the immediate update of reverse legends to COS II, while the cumbersome adoption titles Optimus, Dacicus, and Parthicus were permanently retired from his regular coinage. Numismatic analysis of die pairings across related accession types demonstrates that RIC 30 belongs to a coherent inaugural group that also depicted scenes of imperial adoption, the arrival of Hadrian in Rome, and allegories of Concordia and Felicitas, all minted in rapid succession during the autumn of 117 AD.

Circulation, Wear Patterns, and Archaeological Context

Despite its brief period of striking in late 117 AD, RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30 circulated widely throughout the western territories of the Roman Empire. Archaeological findspots and hoard evidence from Italy, Gaul, the Rhineland, and Britannia demonstrate that second-century bronze coinages remained active in the economic bloodstream for decades, often passing hand-to-hand well into the Severan era or even during the monetary turbulence of the mid-third century. Because of this prolonged operational life, preserved specimens of RIC 30 frequently display extensive surface wear, softened legend lettering, and dark, stable earthen patinas. The high artistic relief of the central figures meant that the globe, the imperial brows, and the prominent laurel wreath bore the brunt of frictional abrasion in commercial transactions. Hoards containing this type generally preserve it alongside worn Flavian, Nervan, and Trajanic sestertii, confirming that the Rome mint's accession donatives and public disbursements rapidly assimilated into everyday market activity across municipal and military frontiers.

References

1. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II, Part 3: From Hadrian to Antoninus Pius (AD 117-138) - Hadrian. pp. 82-84, no. 30
2. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. pp. 397-398
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 30. ric.2_3(2).hdn.30
4. Untersuchungen zur romischen Reichspragung des zweiten Jahrhunderts, Teil II: Die Reichspragung zur Zeit des Hadrian. nos. 497-498