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Sestertius - Trajan and Parthamaspates REX PARTHIS DATVS S C, Parthia
| Issuer | Roman Imperial Mint |
|---|---|
| Year | 114-117 |
| Type | Standard circulation coin |
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| Reverse description | Trajan, bare-headed and clad in military dress, is depicted seated left on a raised tribunal platform, accompanied by a prefect standing to his right. Before him stands Parthamaspates, the Roman-appointed client king of Parthia, facing left; at the foot of the platform kneels the personification of Parthia in a gesture of submission. The scene commemorates Trajan's installation of Parthamaspates as a dependent Parthian king, a pivotal act of Roman imperial diplomacy during the Parthian campaigns. The senatorial legend SC appears in the lower field, affirming the coin's authorization by decree of the Senate. |
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| Mint | Rome |
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| Additional information |
Struck to commemorate Trajan's installation of Parthamaspates as a client king over Parthia in 116 AD — a moment of Roman military overreach that collapsed almost immediately. Parthamaspates was expelled by Parthian nobles within months, and Trajan died in 117 before he could respond. The legend REX PARTHIS DATVS, "king given to the Parthians," documents a political settlement that had already unravelled by the time most of these coins reached circulation.
RIC 668 is among a tight cluster of Trajanic issues celebrating eastern conquests that were reversed under Hadrian almost the moment he took power.