Æ33 - Hadrian L Ϛ

Year 6 of Hadrian's reign in Egypt — the regnal year Ϛ marked on this issue — falls precisely within his celebrated tour of the eastern provinces, which began around 121 AD. Alexandria's mint was unusually responsive to imperial visits, adjusting types rapidly to flatter arriving emperors. Whether Hadrian had already reached Egypt by this striking is debated; he didn't arrive in Alexandria itself until 130 AD, but the administrative machinery of the nome clearly anticipated and acknowledged his eastern presence years earlier.

The Alexandrian bronze series of this period is notorious for inconsistent fabric, and 18g for a 33mm piece suggests a somewhat light flan by the standards of the type.