Hadrian. A.D. 117-138. Æ as. 8.86 gm. 25 mm. Rome mint. Struck A.D. 119. His laureate bust right; IMP CAESAR TRAIANVS HADRIANVS AVG / Britannia seated facing, resting foot on rock, head on hand, and holding scepter; shield to right; PONT MAX TR POT COS III around, S C across field, BRITANNIA in exergue. RIC II 577a. Fine; red and green patina. Very Rare.

The first appearance on a coin of the personification of Britannia, presumably struck to commemorate the suppression of an uprising of the northern British tribes across the northern frontier during the early part of Hadrian's reign. A result was construction of the famous seventy-three-mile long Hadrian's Wall ("Vallum Aelium") to shore up Rome's northern border across the island.