Aureus - Hadrian ROMVLO CONDITORI, Romulus

Hadrian's "Romulo Conditori" aurei belong to a remarkable series issued around 130 AD that honored Rome's legendary and historical founders and heroes — a propagandistic project with no real precedent in imperial coinage. The series almost certainly connected to Hadrian's extensive building program in Rome and his self-conscious positioning as a restorer of Roman tradition, particularly after years spent governing from the provinces.

Calicó records only a handful of confirmed specimens, and RIC II.3 1423 is among the rarer types within the series itself.