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Aureus - Hadrian COS III, Roma
| Issuer | Roman Imperial Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 128-129 |
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| Shape | Round (irregular) |
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| Obverse description | Laureate, draped, and cuirassed bust of Emperor Hadrian facing left, portrayed from behind or in three-quarter rear view, conveying a dignified imperial effigy rendered in the refined Hadrianic classicising style. The legend is disposed around the bust in the field, reading HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS P P in Latin capitals. The portraiture is characteristic of Hadrian's mature coinage, with the emperor depicted in full military and civic honours. |
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| Obverse lettering | HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS P P (Translation: Hadrianus Augustus, Pater Patriae. Hadrian, emperor (Augustus), father of the nation.) |
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| Additional information |
Hadrian's third consulship, held in 119 AD, was technically long past by the time this coin was struck nearly a decade later — he retained the COS III title as a permanent honorific rather than an active office. The dating to 128–129 places this issue during his return to Rome after his second great eastern tour, a journey that had consumed most of the previous four years and taken him through Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, and Judaea, the last of which was already simmering toward the Bar Kokhba revolt that would erupt within three years.
Roma as a reverse type carried particular resonance at this moment: Hadrian had just refounded the city of Jerusalem as Aelia Capitolina.