Sestertius - Hadrian P M TR P COS III S C, Ceres

Hadrian's early sestertii from this period reflect his calculated effort to stabilize the empire after Trajan's costly eastern campaigns — he abandoned Mesopotamia and Armenia almost immediately upon accession, a decision that scandalized the Senate but freed enormous fiscal and military resources. Ceres issues were particularly associated with the grain supply and, by extension, the emperor's role in maintaining it. Hadrian took that obligation seriously enough to tour the provinces himself, an almost unprecedented practice for a sitting emperor.