Hadrian Orichalcum Sestertius, RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 31

Monetary Context and Political Background

In August AD 117, the Roman monetary system functioned on a bimetallic and base-metal framework consolidated under Augustus and reformed under Nero. The sestertius, struck in orichalcum (a bright golden copper-zinc brass alloy), represented the premier large-module denomination of domestic commerce, tariffed at one quarter of a silver denarius or four copper asses. Beyond its substantial fiscal utility in state disbursements, tax receipts, and market trade, the broad flan of the sestertius served as an expansive canvas for political communication directed primarily at Italy and the urban population of Rome. Upon the sudden death of Trajan at Selinus and Hadrian's acclamation by the legions in Antioch, the imperial administration faced immediate scrutiny regarding the legitimacy of the succession. Whispers of a deathbed adoption orchestrated by Empress Plotina prompted an intense, coordinated propaganda effort. The earliest coinage produced at Rome under Hadrian, including RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 31, was rapidly prepared to announce the seamless transfer of imperium and to assure the senatorial aristocracy that the new Princeps derived his authority directly from his illustrious, newly deified adoptive father.

Mint and Production Standards

This sestertius type was manufactured exclusively at the central imperial mint in Rome. Struck in orichalcum, the coin was produced using high-relief dies cut by engravers experienced in the disciplined, classicizing style of Trajan's later years. Blanks were cast in individual moulds or prepared from cast ingots, then brought to a heated or semi-soft state before being struck between engraved bronze or iron dies. The standard sestertius under Hadrian was targeted at approximately one Roman ounce, commonly yielding individual specimen weights between 24 and 28 grams, with a module measuring approximately 32 to 34 millimeters in diameter. The senatorial sanction formula SC (Senatus Consulto) is placed prominently in the reverse exergue, preserving the formal Augustan constitutional convention whereby the Senate exercised nominal jurisdiction over brass and copper coin production. Die alignment for early Hadrianic bronze issues at Rome generally followed a regular vertical or near-vertical axis (12 o'clock or 6 o'clock), reflecting the careful institutional discipline of the urban mint workshops.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Image

The obverse displays a right-facing bust of Hadrian, laureate and cuirassed, viewed from the front. In this earliest phase of Hadrianic coinage, the die cutters had not yet received formal life sketches or official three-dimensional models of the new emperor from the eastern provinces. Consequently, the portraiture retains clear stylistic continuity with late Trajanic art, featuring a compact, mature facial structure, prominent cheekbones, and carefully arranged hair bound by the imperial laurel wreath. The breastplate (cuirass) emphasizes Hadrian's role as supreme military commander (imperator), reflecting his position at the head of the Danubian and eastern armies. Unlike the prominent, full Hellenic beard that would define Hadrian's mature numismatic portraiture in later years, early AD 117 portraits exhibit shorter, closely trimmed facial hair or transitional rendering as mint celators adapted to the sovereign's personal appearance while remaining anchored in traditional Roman military portrait habits.

Reverse Composition and Dynastic Symbolism

The reverse composition presents a profound ideological scene: Trajan, draped in a toga or military mantle, stands facing right, while Hadrian stands facing left, confronting him. Together, their hands clasp and support a globe positioned between them. This imagery communicates the formal investiture and transmission of universal sovereignty (orbis terrarum). Trajan is depicted as the handing-over authority, bridging mortal rule and divine status, while Hadrian respectfully receives the symbol of world dominion. The iconography directly counters contemporary rumors regarding the irregularities of Hadrian's adoption by visualizing an explicit, harmonious, and unequivocal bilateral transfer of power. In the lower field, the letters SC occupy the exergue, signifying senatorial assent to this constitutional continuity. The design was produced solely during Hadrian's first emission, disappearing once his authority was firmly established and recognized across the empire.

Epigraphic Analysis and Titulature

The legends on RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 31 provide vital chronological and legal evidence. The obverse legend reads IMP CAES DIVI TRAIAN AVG F TRAIAN HADRIAN OPT AVG GER, which expands to Imperator Caesar, Divi Traiani Augusti Filius, Traianus Hadrianus Optimus Augustus Germanicus. This phrasing is notable for prioritizing Hadrian's status as the son of the deified Trajan (Divi Traiani Augusti Filius) and retaining the cognomen Traianus along with the Trajanic victory titles Optimus and Germanicus. The reverse legend continues the imperial titulature: DAC PARTHICO P M TR P COS P P, reading Dacicus Parthico, Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate, Consul, Pater Patriae. The inclusion of Parthico, Dacicus, and Pater Patriae reflects the initial, wholesale transfer of Trajanic honorifics to Hadrian by enthusiastic authorities in Rome before Hadrian officially declined certain honors, such as Pater Patriae, which he did not formally accept until AD 128. The legend confirms an exact date in the autumn of AD 117, prior to the systematic shortening and rationalization of Hadrian's official bronze titulature.

Typology, Sequence, and Chronological Placement

In the revised second edition of Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC II, Part 3), this type is catalogued as Hadrian 31, positioned within Emission 1 of the Rome mint for the year AD 117. This emission comprises issues with the longest and most archaic titulature of the reign, struck between August and December AD 117. Strack previously isolated this early group in his fundamental corpus Untersuchungen zur romischen Reichspragung des zweiten Jahrhunderts (Volume II), identifying the handover of the globe as an accession motif unique to the immediate transition period. Neighboring types in this initial series include obverse variants depicting laureate-only busts or busts with drapery on the left shoulder, as well as companion issues in gold and silver carrying the legend ADOPTIO. Hadrian 31 represents the sestertius realization of this succession theme, distinguishing itself by the cuirassed bust viewed from the front paired specifically with the full Trajanic triumphal legend and the globe-transfer reverse scene.

Circulation Patterns and Archaeological Recovery

As high-value base-metal pieces, orichalcum sestertii of early Hadrianic date circulated widely throughout Italy and the western provinces, including Gaul, Hispania, Britain, and the German frontier zones. Because Emission 1 of AD 117 was struck for only a few months, sestertii of type Hadrian 31 were produced in comparatively limited quantities relative to the massive sestertius emissions of Hadrian's second (AD 118) and third (AD 119-138) consulships. In circulation, these coins experienced normal mechanical wear, surviving in commercial circulation well into the late second and early third centuries alongside Antonine and Severan bronze. Hoard evidence from western Europe shows that first-emission Hadrianic sestertii occasionally turn up in site finds and mixed bronze deposits, frequently showing moderate to heavy wear consistent with several decades of sustained market movement before final concealment or loss.

References

1. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. pages cl-clv, 396-402
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 31. RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 31
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II, Part 3: Hadrian. pages 32, 98, no. 31
4. Untersuchungen zur romischen Reichspragung des zweiten Jahrhunderts, Teil II: Die Reichspragung zur Zeit des Hadrian. Stuttgart, 1933, nos. 498-502