Hadrian, known as one of the five good emperors, was born on January 24, 76 AD to a Hispano-Roman family. His predecessor as emperor was Trajan, who was a maternal cousin of Hadrian’s father. Trajan was said to have named Hadrian his successor immediately before his death, according to Trajan’s wife Pompeia Plotina. Hadrian was a devoted student and lover of Greek culture, and in fact he was the first Roman emperor to grow a beard (other than Nero’s somewhat on-again, off-again beard as portrayed on his coins), symbolizing his philhellenism (love of Greek culture) since Greek philosopher Dio of Prusa had equated the wearing of beards with Hellenic ethos. He also considered himself a great intellectual and artist, dabbling in many fields including architecture, and (prior to becoming emperor) is believed to have submitted designs for the Pantheon to the building’s architect Apollodorus, to which Apollodorus replied “Go away and draw your pumpkins. You know nothing about these problems.” The dismissive term “pumpkins” seems to refer to Hadrian’s various architectural drawings of domes. Hadrian is considered by most historians to be a wise and just ruler, although he could sometimes be cruel and petty (he is said to have put the architect Apollodorus to death after becoming emperor, but this story is thought to be apocryphal). In the inimitable (and verbose) prose style from A Dictionary of Roman Coins, first published in London in 1889: “His extreme addiction to sensual pleasures to the extent of indulgence in propensities not to be named, nor, even to be alluded to, was a foul and detestable blot upon his character.” Nevertheless, at least one historian describes the Hadrian period as part of the “happiest era of human history.” Hadrian is well known for his traveling as an integral part of governing his vast empire. He visited Britannia and the West in 122 AD, building Hadrian’s wall in the north of England to “separate Romans from the barbarians.” In 123 – 124 he visited Africa, Parthia and Anatolia, followed by a visit to Greece in 124 – 125 AD. These travels are memorialized on his aurei, with various reverses symbolically depicting the countries he visited. Although not part of my 12 Caesars focus, this particular aureus of Hadrian caught my eye for its stunning portrait quality and light toning. I missed this coin at last year’s NAC auction -- the picture in the catalog did not do justice to the light toning -- so I paid a premium for it this year. In addition, the historical reverse (she-wolf suckling Romulus and Remus) is one of my favorites and is depicted on long history of Roman coins. While Galba’s bronzes may be the apex of Roman coin art on AEs, Hadrian’s aurei might be the high point of art on Roman gold, with the possible exception of Nero’s aurei, which display a similarly high level of artistry. HADRIAN 117 - 138 A.D. AV Aureus (6.87 g.) Rome ca. 124 - 128 A.D. RIC II 193d HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS Laureate bust right, drapery on l. shoulder. Rev. She-wolf stg. Left, suckling romulus and Remus; COS above, III in exergue. Biaggi 598 Let's see how many she-wolf reverses can we represent!
Congratulations on acquiring this spectacular coin! The portrait is extremely artistic and the reverse scene has incredible detail.
That is a phenomenal aureus! Congratulations on acquiring it - I happened to be looking at lots on the same tray in lot viewing and that coin jumped out and grabbed me. The beard detail is pristine and it is highly lustrous (these images make it look a couple grades lower than it is). Doug's post on 'T's has resulted in me starting to look closer at handwriting on legends. The 'V' in AVGVSTVS has an interesting attribute of crossing at the bottom which is different than even the other 'V's on the same part of the legend. This is quite uncommon and I and wonder if it has any significance. The Five Good Emperors are an enjoyable set - you're off to a fantastic start if you ever intend to expand to include the rest!
Your observation about the coin's luster is accurate -- it's much better than shown in the above picture. But the toning isn't quite as pronounced as Triton's website picture indicates, so the tone is pretty much as in the picture. I hadn't noticed the crossed Vs in AVGVSTVS but all three of them exhibit this artifact to some extent. It's a curious engraving style. Anyone else out there have coins with crossed Vs?
You have the advantage of looking at nice coins but these below all have at least one V with a bottom line. Not all V's on these coins show them but, when you are looking at low grade coins, you have to allow for that. I suspect it is a handwriting thing rather like some of us cross 7's and others 1's (I do neither). on rx VI AVG twice on rx in FORTVN but the AVG has a different serif form like your aureus has on AVG on the obverse both V's all - some mor clearly than others weakly but I believe its there 2 out of 3 on obverse both
That coin is so hypnotic. Wow, just wow! I know its January, but that is going to be one coin purchase that's going to be hard to beat by anyone else here this year. Congratulations @IdesOfMarch01
Congrats! That's in a remarkable state of preservation, and what wonderful art on both sides... look at the twins going for it!
Blundered letterforms are not that unusual in Roman Imperial coin inscriptions. The serifs took on a thicker and cruder aspect on later coinage. Note the blundered S letter forms on the Claudius quadrans as depictedon my Roman Imperial Coin Lettering web page. James
Wow! What superb craftsmanship went into the engraving of that coin! When folks say Hadrian's coinage had fine style, this is what they mean. Congrats!
Obviously it's amazing. On a related note, i really need to earn more money and continue to have no wife.
I was expecting a spectacular coin from you after Triton, Ides, and you certinaly delivered! Congratulations! Great page sir, thank you for linking it!
Thanks for all the kind compliments. One of the more artistic features of earlier Roman coins is indeed the higher quality of the lettering itself, as James points out. This is sometimes overlooked but adds to the visual appeal of earlier coins.
The kind of coin that anyone would want. The portrait bears a quality and style similar to a fine Zeus found on the Macedonian Tets of Philip. The portraits of Hadrian are amongst my favorites on Roman Coinage. A strong profile that shows heavy Greek influence. I would thumb through the catalog and wonder who would walk off with this coin. A stunning portrait with a delicately engraved reverse. The reverse is the story of Rome itself. R&R do not look like hastily carved cartoons. They are wonderfully detailed and the human form is perfectly captured. These dies were engraved by someone who had skill and pride. A coin worthy of a museum................and it is all yours. Excellent. btw even the best Nero can't stand up to Hadrian. Hadrian looks like a God, Nero...not so much.
