Regnal year 21 of Hadrian's reign corresponds to 136–137 AD, the period when the emperor was already gravely ill and consumed with the question of succession — he had adopted Lucius Aelius Caesar in 136 only to watch him die on New Year's Day 138. The Alexandrian mint, unusually prolific by provincial standards, continued its annual dated output regardless, producing large bronzes tied to the Egyptian calendar year that began in late August.
The L preceding ΚΑ is the Greek abbreviation for "etos" (year), a dating convention unique to Alexandrian coinage that allows precise calendar placement impossible with most provincial issues.
Regnal year 21 of Hadrian's reign corresponds to 136–137 AD, the period when the emperor was already gravely ill and consumed with the question of succession — he had adopted Lucius Aelius Caesar in 136 only to watch him die on New Year's Day 138. The Alexandrian mint, unusually prolific by provincial standards, continued its annual dated output regardless, producing large bronzes tied to the Egyptian calendar year that began in late August.
The L preceding ΚΑ is the Greek abbreviation for "etos" (year), a dating convention unique to Alexandrian coinage that allows precise calendar placement impossible with most provincial issues.