Three New Hadrians (two Travel Series and one Travel-related)

[DonnaML]

These are all from the recent Noonans auctions -- I bought them the day before I bought the Henry VII profile groat. Noonans doesn't always have ancient coins that interest me, and it's not their primary field of expertise (they occasionally make identification errors), but sometimes they offer really nice material that I don't often see elsewhere.

Hadrian, AR Denarius, Rome Mint, AD 121 (late) - 123 (Group 3, see RIC II.3 p. 109). Obv. Laureate head right (no drapery, truncation with part of upper shoulder line viewed from behind), IMP CAESAR TRAIAN – HADRIANVS AVG / Rev. Oceanus with crab-claw horns, reclining left, leaning on dolphin (tail up), with his head propped on left hand, and holding up anchor with right hand, P M – TR P COS – III. 19 mm., 3.17 g. RIC II.3 520 (ill. Pl. 12) (2019 ed.) (“Scarce”), RSC II 1109, Sear RCV II 3518 (ill. p. 149) BMCRR III Hadrian 127. Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 628 [with old coin envelope].*

*See BMCRR III, Hadrian Introduction, p. cxxxii: “Oceanus, picturesquely defined by claws on the head, dolphin and anchor at side, clearly marks the way of Hadrian to Britain.” (Hadrian traveled from Gaul to Britain in AD 122; see Clive Foss, Roman Historical Coins (Seaby, London, 1990), p. 109.) To the best of my knowledge, based on a search of OCRE, this type is the first of only three Roman Imperial coins to depict Oceanus. See John Melville Jones, A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins (London, Seaby, 1990), entry for “Oceanus” at p. 225: “In Greek and Roman mythology this was the name of the river which was believed to encircle the earth. He was represented in art in the form of a river god with added marine attributes. Oceanus is found on a denarius of Septimius Severus of AD 209, alluding to the emperor’s crossing to Britain, and on a medallion of Constans I (see Bononia).”

Thus, although this type was minted a decade before the coins generally considered part of the Travel Series or "Provinces Cycle" -- which were issued towards or after the end of Hadrian's travels -- it clearly contemplates travel, and effectively serves as a precursor to the Travel Series. So I think I'll consider it an honorary member of that series.

Hadrian AR Denarius, Travel Series, Rome Mint, 130-133 AD (according to RIC II.3 p. 173: Group 10, “Provinces Cyle”) [136 AD according to Sear RCV II p. 148]. Obv. Bare-headed draped bust right, HADRIANVS – AVG COS III PP / Rev. Nilus, naked to waist, reclining right, resting right arm on urn[?] and holding cornucopiae in left hand; above Nilus’s feet, hippo standing left with head raised towards Nilus (mouth open, left ear visible), leaning against Nilus’s upraised left knee [or a rock?]; crocodile right in waters below; NILVS above.  RIC II.3 1547 (ill. Pl. 33) (2019 ed.); RSC II 990; BMCRE III Hadrian 860; Sear RCV II 3508 (ill. p. 148) (obv. var. laureate head). 18x19 mm., 3.30 g.  Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 647; ex C.J. Martin Coins (London, UK) (purchased Dec. 1997) (see notation on old coin envelope accompanying coin).

Is that Nilus's left knee that the hippo is leaning against, or a rock?

Here are the two old coin envelopes that came with the Oceanus and Nilus coins. I am reasonably sure that the handwriting on the two envelopes is by the same person. Note the reference to CJM (CJ Martin) on the Nilus envelope. I'm not sure whether the fact that the handwriting is the same implies that both coins were originally purchased from the same dealer, or simply that they were purchased by the same person, and it's that buyer who was responsible for writing the information on the envelopes.

In addition, do people think the handwriting on these two envelopes is by the same person as the handwriting on an envelope that came with another Hadrian denarius I purchased from Noonans last July, the Restitvtori Africae coin from the Travel Series?

The third new Hadrian:

Hadrian AR Denarius, Travel Series, Rome Mint, 130-133 AD (according to RIC II.3 p. 173: Group 10, “Provinces Cyle”) [136 AD according to Sear RCV II p. 147]. Obv.  Laureate head right, HADRIANVS – AVG COS III PP / Rev. Italia standing three-quarters left, holding sceptre in right hand and cornucopiae in left, ITA – LIA. RIC II.3 1540 (ill. Pl. 33) (2019 ed.); RSC II 869 (ill. p. 139); BMCRE III Hadrian 853 (ill. Pl. 63 no. 14), Sear RCV II 3499 (obv var. bare head). 17 mm., 2.76 g. Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 646; ex Spink & Son Ltd. (with old Spink coin envelope & coin tag stating price of 80 GBP).

The old Spink envelope and tag:

Is the handwriting on the Spink envelope the same as on the others? It looks a bit different to me. 

Counting Oceanus as an honorary member, that gives me a dozen denarii that are part of, or related to, Hadrian's Travel Series. Photos and descriptions of all the others can be found in the thread at https://www.numisforums.com/topic/754-a-new-hadrian-travel-series-denarius/ , so I won't repeat them here.  Instead, here's a "virtual tray" with small photos of all 12; you should be able to enlarge the tray by clicking on it. If not, I have also attached a pdf of the same virtual tray.

Please post any and all Hadrians that you'd like to share -- new or old, Imperial or Provincial, Travel Series or completely unrelated to that Series.

 

 

Table of Hadrian Travel Series Denarii.pdf

[Roman Collector]

Lovely new coins, @DonnaML! the Nilus is particularly nice. This dupondius is one of my favorites.

Hadrian, AD 117-138.
Roman Æ dupondius, 13.78 g, , 26.1 mm, 7 h.
Rome, ca. AD 119-124.
Obv: IMP CAESAR TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG P M TR P COS III, radiate and draped bust, right.
Rev: PIETAS AVGVSTI, Pietas, veiled, draped, standing facing right before a lighted altar, raising her right hand and holding a box of incense in her left.
Refs: RIC 601c; BMCRE 1233-34; Cohen 1044; Strack 542; RCV 3665; Hill 257.

[Ryro]

Goodness gracious Donna! AMAZING stack of travel denarii.

I've been trying to double my Hadrian travel collection for a while but still only have this humble Egyptus:

And a couple others H towns;

Ps, I think it's Nilus's knee 

[Spaniard]

What a lovely collection! @DonnaML....

Three beautiful additions, especially like the Oceanus reverse type as I hadn't seen this type before..

I only have one Hadrian coin in my collection at the moment...

Hadrian (117- 138). Rome, c. 131-138 AD. Silver Denarius. 2,85 g. 17 mm.

Obv: HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, laureate head right.

Rev: FORTVNA AVG, Fortuna standing left holding patera and cornucopiae. VF, old collection patina.

RIC#245A

[Ancient Coin Hunter]

Great new coins Donna. I also have never seen, or at least not recognized an Oceanus type. The Nilus coin is pretty cool too. I can't tell if its a hippo or rock. Wildwinds says hippo.

https://www.wildwinds.com/coins/sear5/s3508.html

[ominus1]

very nice Donna..i don't yet have a 'lay-down' reverse of Hadrian but not because of not trying...but i DO have one of the travel series-related coins (worn as it is)..can't cross the water without a boat....:)

Edited March 25, 2023 by ominus1

[idesofmarch01]

15 hours ago, DonnaML said:

These are all from the recent Noonans auctions -- I bought them the day before I bought the Henry VII profile groat. Noonans doesn't always have ancient coins that interest me, and it's not their primary field of expertise (they occasionally make identification errors), but sometimes they offer really nice material that I don't often see elsewhere.

Hadrian, AR Denarius, Rome Mint, AD 121 (late) - 123 (Group 3, see RIC II.3 p. 109). Obv. Laureate head right (no drapery, truncation with part of upper shoulder line viewed from behind), IMP CAESAR TRAIAN – HADRIANVS AVG / Rev. Oceanus with crab-claw horns, reclining left, leaning on dolphin (tail up), with his head propped on left hand, and holding up anchor with right hand, P M – TR P COS – III. 19 mm., 3.17 g. RIC II.3 520 (ill. Pl. 12) (2019 ed.) (“Scarce”), RSC II 1109, Sear RCV II 3518 (ill. p. 149) BMCRR III Hadrian 127. Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 628 [with old coin envelope].*

*See BMCRR III, Hadrian Introduction, p. cxxxii: “Oceanus, picturesquely defined by claws on the head, dolphin and anchor at side, clearly marks the way of Hadrian to Britain.” (Hadrian traveled from Gaul to Britain in AD 122; see Clive Foss, Roman Historical Coins (Seaby, London, 1990), p. 109.) To the best of my knowledge, based on a search of OCRE, this type is the first of only three Roman Imperial coins to depict Oceanus. See John Melville Jones, A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins (London, Seaby, 1990), entry for “Oceanus” at p. 225: “In Greek and Roman mythology this was the name of the river which was believed to encircle the earth. He was represented in art in the form of a river god with added marine attributes. Oceanus is found on a denarius of Septimius Severus of AD 209, alluding to the emperor’s crossing to Britain, and on a medallion of Constans I (see Bononia).”

Thus, although this type was minted a decade before the coins generally considered part of the Travel Series or "Provinces Cycle" -- which were issued towards or after the end of Hadrian's travels -- it clearly contemplates travel, and effectively serves as a precursor to the Travel Series. So I think I'll consider it an honorary member of that series.

Hadrian AR Denarius, Travel Series, Rome Mint, 130-133 AD (according to RIC II.3 p. 173: Group 10, “Provinces Cyle”) [136 AD according to Sear RCV II p. 148]. Obv. Bare-headed draped bust right, HADRIANVS – AVG COS III PP / Rev. Nilus, naked to waist, reclining right, resting right arm on urn[?] and holding cornucopiae in left hand; above Nilus’s feet, hippo standing left with head raised towards Nilus (mouth open, left ear visible), leaning against Nilus’s upraised left knee [or a rock?]; crocodile right in waters below; NILVS above.  RIC II.3 1547 (ill. Pl. 33) (2019 ed.); RSC II 990; BMCRE III Hadrian 860; Sear RCV II 3508 (ill. p. 148) (obv. var. laureate head). 18x19 mm., 3.30 g.  Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 647; ex C.J. Martin Coins (London, UK) (purchased Dec. 1997) (see notation on old coin envelope accompanying coin).

Is that Nilus's left knee that the hippo is leaning against, or a rock?

Here are the two old coin envelopes that came with the Oceanus and Nilus coins. I am reasonably sure that the handwriting on the two envelopes is by the same person. Note the reference to CJM (CJ Martin) on the Nilus envelope. I'm not sure whether the fact that the handwriting is the same implies that both coins were originally purchased from the same dealer, or simply that they were purchased by the same person, and it's that buyer who was responsible for writing the information on the envelopes.

In addition, do people think the handwriting on these two envelopes is by the same person as the handwriting on an envelope that came with another Hadrian denarius I purchased from Noonans last July, the Restitvtori Africae coin from the Travel Series?

The third new Hadrian:

Hadrian AR Denarius, Travel Series, Rome Mint, 130-133 AD (according to RIC II.3 p. 173: Group 10, “Provinces Cyle”) [136 AD according to Sear RCV II p. 147]. Obv.  Laureate head right, HADRIANVS – AVG COS III PP / Rev. Italia standing three-quarters left, holding sceptre in right hand and cornucopiae in left, ITA – LIA. RIC II.3 1540 (ill. Pl. 33) (2019 ed.); RSC II 869 (ill. p. 139); BMCRE III Hadrian 853 (ill. Pl. 63 no. 14), Sear RCV II 3499 (obv var. bare head). 17 mm., 2.76 g. Purchased from Noonans (Noonans Mayfair Ltd., London, UK), Auction 269, 8 March 2023, Lot 646; ex Spink & Son Ltd. (with old Spink coin envelope & coin tag stating price of 80 GBP).

The old Spink envelope and tag:

Is the handwriting on the Spink envelope the same as on the others? It looks a bit different to me. 

Counting Oceanus as an honorary member, that gives me a dozen denarii that are part of, or related to, Hadrian's Travel Series. Photos and descriptions of all the others can be found in the thread at https://www.numisforums.com/topic/754-a-new-hadrian-travel-series-denarius/ , so I won't repeat them here.  Instead, here's a "virtual tray" with small photos of all 12; you should be able to enlarge the tray by clicking on it. If not, I have also attached a pdf of the same virtual tray.

Please post any and all Hadrians that you'd like to share -- new or old, Imperial or Provincial, Travel Series or completely unrelated to that Series.

 

 

Table of Hadrian Travel Series Denarii.pdf 885.84 kB · 1 download

These really are excellent Travel Series denarii and I congratulate you on having such a discerning eye!

The Oceanus is a particularly good find especially with the level of detail on the reverse figure.

I think all the handwritten tags are from the same hand.  Even though the third tag appears to have slight differences from the first two, I'm convinced it's the same handwriting due to the similarity of the "head right" as "hd r" abbreviation:

[DonnaML]

1 hour ago, idesofmarch01 said:

These really are excellent Travel Series denarii and I congratulate you on having such a discerning eye!

The Oceanus is a particularly good find especially with the level of detail on the reverse figure.

I think all the handwritten tags are from the same hand.  Even though the third tag appears to have slight differences from the first two, I'm convinced it's the same handwriting due to the similarity of the "head right" as "hd r" abbreviation:

Thank you so much -- I believe you must be right, and all are the same handwriting. Which means, I believe, that it's the handwriting of the previous owner of these coins rather than a dealer's handwriting, given that one originally came from Spink and one from C.J. Martin.  (Who, coincidentally, was the dealer quoted in that Art News article about Roma, characterizing Beale as a parvenu.) In any event, someone obviously consigned a very nice collection of Hadrian Travel Series and related denarii to Noonans, which has been auctioning them off piecemeal since last year.  It seems that some anonymous old collections are genuine!  I would guess from the one 1997 purchase date, and the reference to a 1986 Spink Numismatic Circular, and the prices written on the old coin envelopes, that this one was put together in the 1980s and 1990s.

As I mentioned, I think of Noonans (formerly Dix, Noonan & Webb) primarily as a dealer in British coins, but they must be sufficiently well-known in general in the UK for people to sell ancient coins through them as well.  And they seem to get decent prices. 

I had never noticed the Oceanus type -- or even heard of that deity to the best of my recollection, which I suppose isn't surprising given that there are only two other Roman coins depicting him -- until I saw an example in an auction last year. I was outbid on it, but had been keeping an eye out for another specimen ever since.

[DonnaML]

4 hours ago, Ancient Coin Hunter said:

Great new coins Donna. I also have never seen, or at least not recognized an Oceanus type. The Nilus coin is pretty cool too. I can't tell if its a hippo or rock. Wildwinds says hippo.

https://www.wildwinds.com/coins/sear5/s3508.html

Thank you. See my response to @idesofmarch01: until last year, I had never noticed an Oceanus type, and don't think I was even familiar with that deity. I wonder if people thought of Oceanus as a truly separate deity from Neptune. 

On the Nilus coin, that's unquestionably a hippo on the right, looking up at Nilus; my question was what it's leaning against -- namely, a rock or Nilus's left knee. I'm pretty satisfied that it's supposed to be the latter. The funny thing is that in hand, as small as the coin is, the hippo is very distinct and very obvious. But for whatever reason, it sort of blends in with Nilus's knee in the photo (even in the detail I posted), and at first glance, before I received the coin, I thought the whole thing was a rock. I had to stare at the photo for a while before I noticed the hippo's tail on the right, and its open mouth and left ear further to the left. 

[ambr0zie]

Excellent coins. I love the Oceanus type (first time I see it). 

Although my favorite Imperial coins are from 1st and 2nd century, Hadrian is not well represented in my collection, especially in denarii. Actually, I only have one denarius, from my first purchase of ancient coins. 

Not a bad one, though 

18mm, 3.30g. Hadrian 117-138. AR Denarius. Rome Mint 137-138 AD
HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, bare head right /  ROMAE AETERNAE, Roma seated left on low seat, shield at her side, holding palladium and spear. 
RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 2342; Old RIC II Hadrian 265 
 

Here are other Hadrian coins I like - an Alexandrian tetradrachm with a good portrait and a nice reverse - I am sure glad the corrosion carefully avoided the portrait 

Egypt. Alexandria. Hadrian AD 117-138. Billon Tetradrachm. 25 mm, 12,71 g. AD 133-134
ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙϹ ΤΡΑΙΑΝ - ΑΔΡΙΑΝΟϹ ϹƐΒ, laureate draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian, r., seen from rear / L ΙΗ, Sarapis seated, l., holding sceptre; to l., Cerberus
RPC III, 5871 , BMC 620-623

Hadrian AD 117-138. Rome
Semis Æ
20 mm, 4,03 g
AD 124-125
HADRIANVS AVGVSTUS, bust of Hadrian, laureate, draped and cuirassed, right, viewed from rear or side / COS III SC, Roma seated left on cuirass, resting foot on helmet, holding Victory and spear; behind, shield
RIC II, Part 3 (second edition) Hadrian 760; RIC II Hadrian 685 (semis)

[Victrix]

Amazing pieces!

[Marsyas Mike]

As always, a real pleasure seeing your latest acquisition along with your detailed and engaging write-ups @DonnaML. 

My latest Hadrian is part of what I suppose is the "Provincial cycle."  It is a sestertius featuring an allegorical representation of Cappadocia on the reverse.  These travel/Provincial types don't come along within my budget very often, and usually do so only if they are not fully described, as this one was (not).   I've since cleaned some of the green stuff off, which seemed like bronze disease, but this diseased version is the best photo I had: 

Hadrian  Æ Sestertius (130-133 A.D.) Rome Mint HADRIANVS [AVG COS III] P P, laureate, draped bust right / [CAPPADOCIA], S-C, Cappadocia, turreted, standing left, holding Mount Argaeus  and vexillum.  RIC II.3 1636 (old RIC II 847f); BMCRE 1726-1727; RSC 206. (21.93 grams / 32 x 31 mm) eBay Mar. 2023 Die-Match Characterstics: Obv: Die-break N; beady eye.  Rev: Cappadocia's meaty arms. Die-Match Obv. & Rev.:  Sondermann Numismatics (VCoins 1461542 & MA-Shops) Die-Match Obverse: Fritz Rudolf Künker Auction 270; Lot 8746; 02.10.2015 Provenance: Littleton Coin Co. generic "Bronze Sestertius..."

Here are a couple of the die-matches I found for this one:

This came from eBay, but it was at one time sold by Littleton Coin; Littleton sells low-grade ancients in this way, undescribed, and a lot of them turn up on eBay (and some of them into my collection).  This is not the first time I've gotten a better type this way - I guess they figure it isn't worth bothering attributing the low-grade junky stuff. Does this counts as "bottom feeder's provenance"?  Here's the flip it came in:

I also have the Cappadocia type in an as/dupondius (the denomination is unknown as Hadrian dropped the radiate crown on dupondii later in his reign).  The photo makes it look worse than it is, somewhat:

Hadrian  Æ As/Dupondius (130-133 A.D.)  Rome Mint HADRIANVS AVG CO[S III  P P], bare-headed, draped bust right / CAPPADOCIA S C, Cappadocia, turreted, standing left, holding Mount Argaeus and vexillum RIC II.3 1645 (old RIC II 848c). (9.86 grams / 27 x 26 mm)  eBay Feb. 2022 Note:  "Another denominational alteration is the disappearance of the radiate effigy as indicator of the dupondius. It would be absent for the subsequent part of Hadrian's reign until the revival of the radiate dupondius under Ant. Pius...(the dupondius and as) were typically of similar module, hence the need...of the RIC catalogue to have a dupondius or as (dp/as) category. Roman Imperial Coinage II.3: From AD 117 to AD 138 – Hadrian, page 20.

 Also this past fall, I got an as of the Nilus type - it is quite worn, but this may be my only ancient hippopotamus (barely!): 

Hadrian Æ As (130-133 A.D.) Rome Mint HADRIANVS [AVG COS III P P], bare-headed draped bust right / NI[LV]S, Nilus reclining left, holding cornucopia and reed, hippopotamus at feet. RIC II.3 1714 (ex RIC II 868); BMCRE 1778; Cohen 984. (8.86 grams / 24 x 22 mm) eBay Sep. 2022 Notes:  Some sources date this issue to 134-138 A.D., but second edition of RIC dates it to 130-133 A.D.  Note Antinoüs drowned in the Nile in 130 A.D.  Obverse Die-Match (and Rev.?):  Classical Numismatic Group (same coin, two auctions): Electronic Auction 108; Lot 140; 16.02.2005; Electronic Auction 197; Lot 142; 15.10.2008

And a possible die-match: