Hadrian Silver Denarius RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 310

Monetary and Political Context

The early reign of Hadrian witnessed intense ideological consolidation as the newly acclaimed emperor sought to stabilize his domestic position following the controversial execution of four consular senators in AD 118. Cash distributions to the urban populace of Rome, known as congiaria or imperial liberalitates, were essential tools in cementing civic loyalty and displaying the munificence expected of the princeps. Unlike the aggressive territorial expansionism commemorated under Trajan, Hadrian's early coinage increasingly focused on civic harmony, governance, and institutional charity. The issuance of this denarius coincided with Hadrian's third consulship, entered in AD 119 and retained nominally across subsequent coin legends throughout his reign. The specific designation of Liberalitas Augusta III documents the third formal distribution of Hadrian's principate, which modern historical and numismatic consensus places between AD 120 and AD 121. Denarii served as the primary instrument for the payment of civil servants, soldiers, and high-level commercial transactions, but they were also distributed directly during imperial celebrations, making them an ideal visual vehicle for propagating the personal liberality of the princeps.

Mint Organization and Production Standards

This specific denarius type was produced exclusively at the primary imperial mint of Rome. By the early AD 120s, the Rome mint was organized into several officinae (workshops) responsible for striking precious metal and aes denominations under the supervision of the imperial freedman procurator monetae. The technical execution of the series reflects the high artistic and metallurgical standards achieved during the Trajanic and Hadrianic renaissance in Roman state coinage. In terms of physical metrics, the denarii of this issue followed the weight standard established during the late principate of Trajan. Struck from silver blanks with a fineness typically ranging between 80 and 85 percent, individual surviving specimens generally adhere to a nominal target weight of approximately 3.10 to 3.35 grams, with module diameters averaging between 18 and 19.5 millimeters. Flans were cast in spherical or lenticular molds before being cold-struck between engraved bronze or iron dies. Die axes within the Rome mint during this period show a strong preference for regular alignments, predominantly oriented at 6 o'clock or 12 o'clock.

Obverse Iconography and Imperial Portraiture

The obverse features an imposing right-facing bust of Hadrian, rendered with careful attention to plastic modeling and anatomical proportion. The emperor wears the traditional laurel wreath tied at the nape of the neck with fluttering ties, accompanied by drapery visible at the shoulder and throat, viewed from the front. This specific bust type represents one of several distinct iconographic conventions utilized at the Rome mint during the third consulship issues. Hadrian's portraiture broke decisively with the clean-shaven tradition maintained by Roman emperors since Augustus. The finely curled beard, rendered in low relief with delicate chasing, reflected Hadrian's philhellenism and intellectual engagement with Greek philosophy, while simultaneously projecting mature virility. The facial features convey gravitas: a firm jawline, prominent brow, straight nose, and deep-set eye. The surrounding continuous legend frames the bust closely, functioning both as an imperial signature and an aesthetic border.

Reverse Iconography: The Liberalitas Scene

The reverse of RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 310 presents an intricate multi-figure composition that translates a concrete civic event into formal numismatic iconography. Hadrian is depicted seated toward the left upon an elevated platform (suggestum or curule chair), raising his right hand in an open, welcoming gesture of imperial bestowal toward a recipient citizen. Approaching the platform from the left or center is a Roman citizen (togatus), advancing toward the right with body inclined respectfully forward. The citizen holds out the fold of his toga (sinus) to receive the cash distribution or token. This gesture encapsulates the formal ritual of the congiarium, wherein the emperor sat high upon the tribunal in the presence of the Praetorian Guard and civil magistrates while citizens filed past to claim their allotted benefaction. The compositional balance of the seated ruler and the standing civilian emphasizes the direct relationship between the benevolent princeps and the Roman populus.

Epigraphy and Legend Readings

The obverse inscription reads IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG, arranged circumferentially beginning in the lower left and running clockwise. The formulation encapsulates Hadrian's official imperial nomenclature: Imperator (military supreme commander), Caesar (dynastic title), Traianus (emphasizing his formal adoption by Trajan), Hadrianus (the cognomen), and Augustus (the supreme sovereign title). The inclusion of Trajan's name was a persistent feature of Hadrian's earlier coinages, underscoring hereditary legitimacy before the more abbreviated Hadrianus Augustus legends became standard around AD 124. The reverse inscription is divided between the upper perimeter and the exergue. The upper circular legend reads P M TR P COS III, recording the supreme priestly office of Pontifex Maximus, the continuous conferral of Tribunicia Potestas, and the third consulship entered in AD 119. In the lower field and exergual line, the legend LIBERAL AVG / III explicitly identifies the occasion: Liberalitas Augusta III (the Third Liberality of the Emperor). The epigraphy is characterized by classical capital letterforms with crisp serifs, typical of the high-grade output of the imperial capital's die cutters.

Typological Classification and Chronological Placement

In the original 1926 first edition of Roman Imperial Coinage, Hadrian's extensive Liberalitas issues were grouped broadly under general consular rubrics. The second edition of RIC II, Part 3, revised by Abdy and Pfannerstill in 2019, established a far more rigorous chronological sequence based on portrait styles, bust varieties, and obverse legend formulas. Within this classification, RIC II, Part 3 Hadrian 310 represents the specific denarius issue struck between AD 120 and AD 121 featuring the laureate, draped bust viewed from the front. This type is part of a broader coordinated emission celebrating the third liberalitas that included aurei, sestertii, dupondii, and asses. While some collateral variants feature Hadrian accompanied on the platform by the personification of Liberalitas holding an abacus or cornucopia, type 310 is defined by the direct bilateral interaction between the seated emperor and the advancing citizen. The issuance can be placed securely after the initial consular emissions of AD 119 but prior to the stylistic transition in Hadrian's titular forms that occurred around AD 123 to AD 124.

Circulation, Hoards, and Archaeological Context

Denarii of Hadrian's third consulship were among the most widely circulated silver coins of the second century AD, forming the bedrock of silver currency throughout the Antonine and Severan periods. Because the coins were distributed directly to citizens and subsequently integrated into the commercial economy of Rome, they quickly dispersed throughout Italy and into the Western and Danubian provinces via army payments and administrative disbursements. Hoard evidence from across the Roman Empire, including major deposits such as the Reka Devnia hoard in Moesia and various British and Gallic finds, demonstrates that Hadrianic denarii remained in active circulation for more than a century after their minting. They were subject to progressive surface wear and clipping until the major debasements of the mid-third century AD caused older, higher-purity silver pieces to be systematically hoarded or melted down under Gresham's Law.

References

1. Money and Government in the Roman Empire. pp. 195-212
2. Coins of the Roman Empire in the British Museum, Volume III: Nerva to Hadrian. Hadrian, nos. 295-305
3. Online Coins of the Roman Empire: RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 310. ric.2_3(2).hdn.310
4. The Roman Imperial Coinage, Volume II, Part 3: From Hadrian to Antoninus Pius (AD 117-138) - Hadrian. Type 310, p. 122
5. Untersuchungen zur römischen Reichsprägung des zweiten Jahrhunderts: Teil II, Die Reichsprägung zur Zeit des Hadrian. nos. 80-85