Classical Numismatic Group, LLC
Triton XXV 11-12 Jan 2022
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Hadrian. AD 117-138. AV Aureus (19.5mm, 7.22 g, 7h). Rome mint. Struck circa late AD 120-121. IMP CAES TRAIAN HADRIANVS AVG, laureate, draped bust right, viewed from front / P M TR P COS III, Minerva Promachus facing, brandishing javelin held in right hand, shield on left arm. RIC II.3 298 var. (draped and cuirassed bust); Strack 98 var. (same); Calicó 1306 ("Minerva") and 1343 ("palladium") var. (same); BMCRE 116 var. (same). A few faint scratches. VF. Apparently an unpublished variant of a rare type.
The new edition of RIC Vol. II.3 lists this reverse type as C (Common); however it appears to be very rare in commerce, with only a single example in CoinArchives. The type appears twice in the older edition of RIC II, with the reverse figure described as "Minerva" (68) and "Palladium" (111); similarly, as noted above, there are two entries in Calicó, 1306 and 1343. All published examples have a draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian; this variety, with only a draped bust, seems to be rarer still, if not unique.
The new edition of RIC Vol. II.3 lists this reverse type as C (Common); however it appears to be very rare in commerce, with only a single example in CoinArchives. The type appears twice in the older edition of RIC II, with the reverse figure described as "Minerva" (68) and "Palladium" (111); similarly, as noted above, there are two entries in Calicó, 1306 and 1343. All published examples have a draped and cuirassed bust of Hadrian; this variety, with only a draped bust, seems to be rarer still, if not unique.