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Stater - Rhoemetalces Hadrian
| Issuer | Bosporan Kingdom (Bosporos) |
|---|---|
| Year | 143 |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | Anokhin#1663-1665 III#924 Bosporos#508 , MacDonald#443 |
| Obverse description | Log in to see details |
|---|---|
| Obverse script | Greek |
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| Reverse description | Laureate head of the Roman Emperor Hadrian facing right, rendered in a style reflecting Roman imperial portraiture adapted for Bosporan coinage. The neck is truncated and the laureate wreath is clearly delineated. A spearhead appears in the field before the portrait on certain specimens. Below the bust, the regnal year in Greek numerals occupies the lower field. |
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| Additional information |
Rhoemetalces ruled the Bosporan Kingdom as a client king under Roman suzerainty, and this stater belongs to a coinage tradition unique in the ancient world — a gold series that ran with remarkable continuity for centuries under successive dynasts, each issue pairing the reigning Bosporan king with the current Roman emperor. By 143 AD the practice was well entrenched, functioning less as currency than as a diplomatic instrument, affirming the kingdom's submission to Rome while simultaneously advertising local dynastic legitimacy. Hadrian himself had died in 138, making this a posthumous imperial pairing — a detail that complicates precise dating within Rhoemetalces' reign.