Hadrian Denarius: RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229

Monetary Context and Denominational Function

During the early second century AD, the silver denarius served as the operational backbone of Roman state expenditure, military remuneration, and interregional market trade. Following the monetary reforms of Nero and subsequent minor weight adjustments under Domitian and Trajan, the denarius maintained an official fineness hovering around 89 to 90 percent silver, striking at roughly 96 coins to the Roman pound (libra) for a theoretical weight standard of approximately 3.25 grams. Under Hadrian, the denarius retained its key position within the bimetallic imperial system, pegged at twenty-five denarii to the gold aureus, four sestertii to the denarius, and sixteen copper asses per denarius. The issue of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229 took place at a time when the imperial administration was actively settling accounts following Trajan's eastern campaigns, securing loyalty among provincial legions, and reaffirming financial discipline in the capital. The abundance of third-consulship denarii illustrates the continuous, high-volume output of Rome's workshops to supply cash distributions (congiaria), civil salaries, and routine fiscal liquidity across Italy and the provinces.

Mint of Rome and Production Techniques

All regular imperial denarii bearing the typology of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229 were produced exclusively at the primary imperial mint in Rome. Mint operations under Hadrian were organized into officinae (workshops), each operating with specialized teams of scalptores (engravers), flan preparers, and signatores (strikers). Flans were cast in open or two-part moulds, producing circular silver blanks that were subsequently heated and struck between an engraved lower (anvil) die and an upper (trussell) die. The mechanical execution of this type exhibits the hallmark high-relief engraving and balanced letterforms characteristic of the early Hadrianic Rome mint. Because die pairing was carried out manually under intense production quotas, specimens exhibit slight variations in die axis, though a predominantly vertical alignment (either 6 o'clock or 12 o'clock) was standard. The vast volume of silver processed between AD 119 and 120 required numerous die pairs, resulting in subtle stylistic nuances among individual dies while preserving strict adherence to the authorized imperial model.

Obverse Portraiture and Iconography

The obverse presents a right-facing portrait bust of Hadrian wearing the laurel wreath of victory and civic leadership. In accordance with the precise taxonomic definition of type 229, the portrait portrays Hadrian with a bare chest, while slight traces of drapery are visible on his far, left shoulder. This physiognomic treatment marks the definitive establishment of Hadrian's mature public portraiture, characterized by carefully curled hair, a neatly trimmed beard, and an idealized, classical facial structure. The introduction of the imperial beard broke with two centuries of clean-shaven Julio-Claudian and Flavian imperial norms, deliberately evoking the intellectual aura of Greek philosophers as well as the heroic martial tradition of ancient Hellenic commanders. The presence of drapery gathered on the distant shoulder provides an artistic sense of depth, contrasting with the starkness of a fully truncated neck while avoiding the heavy, formal folds of a fully paludate or cuirassed bust.

Reverse Iconography of Pietas

The reverse of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229 features Pietas, the personification of divine reverence, filial devotion, and moral duty. She is depicted standing facing front with her head turned to the left (though rare die varieties present her head turned to the right). She is fully draped in a stola and veiled, raising both hands symmetrically in an ancient gesture of prayer (orans). This stance highlights traditional Roman religious protocol, wherein the supplicant approached the divine with open, raised palms and covered head. Within the political climate of AD 119 to 120, Pietas played a dual ideological role: she symbolized Hadrian's dutiful reverence toward his adoptive father Trajan, whose deification Hadrian had championed, and signaled his commitment to the welfare and religious institutions of the Roman state. The raised hands conveyed both an appeal for divine protection over the princeps and the emperor's reciprocal protection over his subjects.

Epigraphy and Imperial Titles

The legends on both faces of the coin use clear, standardized Roman lapidary capitals. The obverse reads IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG, abbreviating 'Imperator Caesar Traianus Hadrianus Augustus'. This formulation prominently retains the name 'Traianus', an explicit political choice by Hadrian in the early years of his reign to emphasize his legitimate adoption and unbroken constitutional succession from Trajan. The reverse legend reads P M TR P COS III, standing for 'Pontifex Maximus, Tribunicia Potestate, Consul Tertium'. This compact sequence records Hadrian's status as supreme pontiff of the state religion, his continuous investiture with tribunician sacrosanctity, and his entry into his third consulship in January of AD 119. Notably, because Hadrian never accepted a fourth consulship, the title COS III appeared on his coinage for the remainder of his life, making precise dating dependent on changing obverse titulature and portrait styles.

Typological Classification and Chronological Placement

In the original 1926 edition of Roman Imperial Coinage (RIC II), Hadrian's early coinage was catalogued under broader, less differentiated groupings. In the revised second edition by Richard Abdy and Peter Pfisterer (RIC II.3, 2019), Hadrian's extensive output was meticulously reclassified according to distinct portrait varieties, bust drapery distinctions, and legend breaks. Within this updated taxonomy, type 229 is classified under Group 3 of the Rome mint, produced specifically in AD 119 to 120. It is distinguished from parallel types such as RIC II.3 228 (which features a fully draped bust) and RIC II.3 230 (which displays a cuirassed bust) entirely by the specific arrangement of the bare chest with traces of drapery on the far shoulder. The reverse type with Pietas raising both hands was struck concurrently with other allegorical reverses such as Concordia, Felicitas, and Justitia, forming a coherent ideological programme that celebrated the virtues of Hadrian's newly secured regime.

Circulation, Hoard Evidence, and Survival

Denarii of Hadrian's third consulship were produced in immense quantities and circulated extensively throughout the western and eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. Specimens of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229 frequently appear in imperial hoards deposited across Britain, Gaul, the Rhine-Danube frontier, and the Levant. Hoards such as those from Reka Devnia (Marcianopolis) and Falkirk demonstrate that early Hadrianic silver coins remained in active circulation well into the late second and early third centuries, circulating alongside issues of Antoninus Pius, Marcus Aurelius, and Septimius Severus. Because the silver content of Hadrian's denarii was slightly higher than that of later Severan issues, these coins were gradually hoarded or selectively melted during third-century debasements. Today, surviving specimens of type 229 are well represented in public and private cabinets, typically showing moderate to heavy circulation wear, with exceptionally well-preserved examples prized for their detailed depiction of early Hadrianic classical die engraving.

References

1. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II, Part 3: From Hadrian to Antoninus Pius (AD 117-138) - Hadrian. No. 229
2. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 229. ric.2_3(2).hdn.229
3. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Vol. II: Vespasian to Hadrian. pp. 355-356
4. Untersuchungen zur romischen Reichspragung des zweiten Jahrhunderts, Teil II: Die Reichspragung zur Zeit des Hadrian. No. 68