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Sestertius - Hadrian COS III S C, Roma
| Issuer | Roman Empire (27 BC - 395 AD) |
|---|---|
| Year | 128-129 |
| Type | Log in to see details |
| Value | 1 Sestertius = 1/4 Denarius |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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|---|---|
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| Reverse description | Hadrian standing left, extending his right hand toward a toga-clad Senator standing right and holding a sceptre, while Roma stands between them facing right, grasping a spear in her left hand and drawing Hadrian's hand toward the Senator's in a gesture of concord. The composition conveys the theme of imperial harmony between the emperor, the senate, and the personification of Rome. The reverse legend appears in two fields divided by the central group, with the senatorial authorisation mark S C (Senatus Consultum) prominently placed in the exergue or flanking the figures. The scene is rendered in the classicising style characteristic of Hadrianic monumental relief. |
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| Reverse lettering | COS III S C (Translation: Consul Tertium. Senatus Consultum. Consul for the third time. Decree of the senate.) |
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| Additional information |
The COS III designation anchors this piece to Hadrian's third consulship, a title he held continuously from 119 AD onward but rarely used on coinage after 128 — making the dating window unusually precise for a sestertius. These years coincide with Hadrian's extensive provincial tours, during which the Roman mint at times issued heavily thematic series to reinforce imperial presence in Rome while the emperor himself was abroad. The Roma reverse type was part of that broader programmatic coinage, a deliberate effort to project metropolitan authority from a capital whose ruler was conspicuously absent for years at a stretch.