Æ34 - Hadrian L ΚΑ

Year 21 of Hadrian's reign fell during his final years of active administration, shortly after his controversial designation of Lucius Ceionius Commodus as heir — a choice so unpopular with the Senate that it was nearly invalidated by Commodus's death in early 138. Alexandrian bronzes of this regnal year were produced under the prefect of Egypt, functioning through a mint that operated on a distinct Egyptian calendar cycle entirely separate from Rome's reckoning, which is why Alexandrian coins carry regnal year notations rather than consular dates.