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AR25 - Hadrian L ΔΕΚΑΤΟΥ
| Issuer | Alexandria (Egypt) |
|---|---|
| Year | 125-126 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | Köln 1003; Dattari 1503; BMC Alexandria 770; Emmett 828.10 |
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| Reverse description | Draped bust of the syncretic deity Sarapis facing right, adorned with a tall kalathos (modius) atop his head and a laurel wreath, his long curling hair and full beard rendered with fine detail characteristic of Alexandrian coinage. The deity's drapery is visible at the shoulder. The regnal date legend L ΔΕΚΑΤΟΥ, denoting the tenth year of Hadrian's reign, is inscribed in the field to the left and around the right side of the bust. |
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| Mintage | ND (125-126) |
| Additional information |
Year 10 of Hadrian's reign coincides almost exactly with his first visit to Egypt — a journey he undertook in 130 AD, though the administrative numbering of regnal years in Alexandria ran on a different calendar cycle anchored to the Egyptian new year in late August. The Alexandrian mint operated under distinct imperial oversight, producing billon tetradrachms as a closed currency system: Roman coins did not circulate freely in Egypt, and Egyptian issues did not leave the province. This monetary isolation was deliberate, inherited from Ptolemaic practice and maintained by Rome as a fiscal control mechanism.
The Köln and Dattari references place this squarely within a well-documented sequence, but individual die matches across the four major catalogues frequently diverge.