Hadrian 117-138 AD Rome c. 131 AD, Denarius, 3.18g.png

Hadrian 117-138 AD Rome c. 132 AD, Denarius, 3.10g (2).png

Roman Silver Denarius of Emperor Hadrian featuring Liberalitas (about 1890 years ago)

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This silver denarius (common Roman silver coin) was minted around 132 AD in Rome during the reign of Emperor Hadrian.

Front Side: Features the laureate (bay leaf crowned) head of Emperor Hadrian facing right with the inscription "HADRIANVS - AVG COS II P P" (Hadrian Augustus, Consul twice, Father of his Country)
Back Side: Depicts Liberalitas (personification of generosity) standing left, holding a coin counter and cornucopia (horn of plenty), with the inscription "LIBERA - LITAS AVG VI" (the sixth imperial generosity)

Technical Details:

Weight: 3.10 grams

References: RIC-2018 (S), C-938, BMC-665 note

Historical Significance: This coin commemorates Emperor Hadrian's sixth act of liberalitas, which was a public distribution of money or food to the citizens of Rome. These ceremonial distributions were important political gestures that demonstrated the emperor's generosity and concern for his people. Hadrian, known for his extensive travels throughout the empire and his architectural achievements (including Hadrian's Wall in Britain and the rebuilt Pantheon in Rome), used such ceremonies to maintain popularity with the Roman populace while implementing his policies of peace and cultural development.

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This silver denarius (common Roman silver coin) was minted around 132 AD in Rome during the reign of Emperor Hadrian.

Front Side: Features the laureate (bay leaf crowned) head of Emperor Hadrian facing right with the inscription "HADRIANVS - AVG COS II P P" (Hadrian Augustus, Consul twice, Father of his Country)
Back Side: Depicts Liberalitas (personification of generosity) standing left, holding a coin counter and cornucopia (horn of plenty), with the inscription "LIBERA - LITAS AVG VI" (the sixth imperial generosity)

Technical Details:

Weight: 3.10 grams

References: RIC-2018 (S), C-938, BMC-665 note

This silver denarius (common Roman silver coin) was minted around 132 AD in Rome during the reign of Emperor Hadrian.

Front Side: Features the laureate (bay leaf crowned) head of Emperor Hadrian facing right with the inscription "HADRIANVS - AVG COS II P P" (Hadrian Augustus, Consul twice, Father of his Country)
Back Side: Depicts Liberalitas (personification of generosity) standing left, holding a coin counter and cornucopia (horn of plenty), with the inscription "LIBERA - LITAS AVG VI" (the sixth imperial generosity)

Technical Details:

Weight: 3.10 grams

References: RIC-2018 (S), C-938, BMC-665 note

Hadrian (/ˈheɪdriən/ HAY-dree-ən; Latin: Publius Aelius Hadrianus [(h)adriˈjaːnus]; 24 January 76 – 10 July 138) was Roman emperor from 117 to 138. Hadrian was born in Italica, close to modern Seville in Spain, an Italic settlement in Hispania Baetica; his branch of the Aelia gens, the Aeli Hadriani, came from the town of Hadria in eastern Italy. He was a member of the Nerva-Antonine dynasty.

Early in his political career, Hadrian married Vibia Sabina, grandniece of the ruling emperor, Trajan. The marriage and Hadrian's later succession as emperor were probably promoted by Trajan's wife Pompeia Plotina. Soon after his own succession, Hadrian had four leading senators unlawfully put to death, probably because they seemed to threaten the security of his reign; this earned him the senate's lifelong enmity. He earned further disapproval by abandoning Trajan's expansionist policies and territorial gains in Mesopotamia, Assyria, Armenia, and parts of Dacia. Hadrian preferred to invest in the development of stable, defensible borders and the unification of the empire's disparate peoples as subjects of a panhellenic empire, led by Rome.