Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XXV 22-23 Sep 2022
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Hadrian Æ Sestertius. Rome, AD 133-135. HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, bare-headed and draped bust to right / PAX AVG, Pax standing to left, holding branch and cornucopiae; S-C across fields. RIC II.3 2167 (same dies); C. 1016; BMCRE 1528; NAC 54, lot 432; NGSA 5, lot 233 = Sotheby's (Hunt), lot 134 = M&M 52, lot 617 (same dies); Glendining (Ryan V), lot 2548 = Naville II (Vautier-Collignon), lot 732 = J. Hirsch XXXI, lot 1325 (same dies); M&M XVII, lot 451 = Hess (Trau), lot 1267 = Toynbee pl. I.4 = BMFA Roman Medallions no. 24 (same dies); Lanz 94, lot 498 = M&M Basel, 12-13 November 1970, lot 343 (same dies). 21.24g, 34mm, 6h.
Good Very Fine; somewhat corroded surfaces, cuprite gently levelled out in parts. Excessively Rare - the work of the 'Alphaeus master', one of only six examples known.
From a private Swiss collection;
Ex Numismatik Lanz München, Auction 94, 22 November 1999, lot 498;
Ex Münzen & Medaillen AG Basel, Auction 318, 12 November 1970, lot 343.
It is the quality of engraving employed for the dies used to strike this sestertius of Hadrian that mark it out for high praise: only one die pair is known for the type and is attributed to the work of a medallion engraver whom Charles Seltman dubbed the 'Alphaeus master' and declared "a brilliant man". This enigmatic die-engraver has been identified with the sculptor Antonianus of Aphrodisias, whose superb classical style embodied the revival of Greek art and culture under Hadrian and with whose reliefs stylistic parallels can be drawn. Equally, Seltman argued that the "strong characteristic gem-engraver's manner" with which this die was engraved perhaps identifies the Alphaeus master as a gem-engraver working within the imperial court, as the gem-engraver Dioskourides worked for Augustus. (1948, p.83)
In her seminal work on Roman Medallions (1944, p.32), Toynbee described this type as a "medallic coin" which paired a standard, albeit highly elegant, reverse die engraved for a sestertius (with SC inscribed) with an obverse die intended for a larger bronze medallion. Indeed, she ascribes two bronze medallions of Hadrian in Gnecchi to the Alphaeus master, the second of which (pl. 42, no. 4) is remarkably close to (and Toynbee thought perhaps the same die as) the obverse die of the present sestertius.
Just as medallions were minted on occasions of great importance in the reign of a Roman emperor, P. V. Hill suggests this medallic sestertius was minted to mark Hadrian's vicennalia or twentieth anniversary as Roman emperor in AD 135. (1970, p.167) The impressive authoritative portrait of the veteran emperor is carved with astonishing delicacy and precision, particularly notable in the wave-like hair which curls forward around the temples, his angular features, and full cropped beard.
Although identification remains elusive, the Alphaeus master is the most celebrated die engraver of the Roman period. Seltman concluded his discussion of the artist with the words "skill and elegance of manner mark all the work of this man – the last engraver to employ that style which we have come to regard as Classical Greek." (1948, p.85) Thus, these masterful rare medallic sestertii of Hadrian, of which there are seemingly only five that have appeared on the market in the last century, are highly-prized by collectors of Roman coinage. There is no better indication of the desire for this type than the Nelson Bunker Hunt example, which holds the record for the highest price for a Roman coin achieved at auction, having sold in 2008 for CHF 2,000,000 (NGSA 5, 233).
Good Very Fine; somewhat corroded surfaces, cuprite gently levelled out in parts. Excessively Rare - the work of the 'Alphaeus master', one of only six examples known.
From a private Swiss collection;
Ex Numismatik Lanz München, Auction 94, 22 November 1999, lot 498;
Ex Münzen & Medaillen AG Basel, Auction 318, 12 November 1970, lot 343.
It is the quality of engraving employed for the dies used to strike this sestertius of Hadrian that mark it out for high praise: only one die pair is known for the type and is attributed to the work of a medallion engraver whom Charles Seltman dubbed the 'Alphaeus master' and declared "a brilliant man". This enigmatic die-engraver has been identified with the sculptor Antonianus of Aphrodisias, whose superb classical style embodied the revival of Greek art and culture under Hadrian and with whose reliefs stylistic parallels can be drawn. Equally, Seltman argued that the "strong characteristic gem-engraver's manner" with which this die was engraved perhaps identifies the Alphaeus master as a gem-engraver working within the imperial court, as the gem-engraver Dioskourides worked for Augustus. (1948, p.83)
In her seminal work on Roman Medallions (1944, p.32), Toynbee described this type as a "medallic coin" which paired a standard, albeit highly elegant, reverse die engraved for a sestertius (with SC inscribed) with an obverse die intended for a larger bronze medallion. Indeed, she ascribes two bronze medallions of Hadrian in Gnecchi to the Alphaeus master, the second of which (pl. 42, no. 4) is remarkably close to (and Toynbee thought perhaps the same die as) the obverse die of the present sestertius.
Just as medallions were minted on occasions of great importance in the reign of a Roman emperor, P. V. Hill suggests this medallic sestertius was minted to mark Hadrian's vicennalia or twentieth anniversary as Roman emperor in AD 135. (1970, p.167) The impressive authoritative portrait of the veteran emperor is carved with astonishing delicacy and precision, particularly notable in the wave-like hair which curls forward around the temples, his angular features, and full cropped beard.
Although identification remains elusive, the Alphaeus master is the most celebrated die engraver of the Roman period. Seltman concluded his discussion of the artist with the words "skill and elegance of manner mark all the work of this man – the last engraver to employ that style which we have come to regard as Classical Greek." (1948, p.85) Thus, these masterful rare medallic sestertii of Hadrian, of which there are seemingly only five that have appeared on the market in the last century, are highly-prized by collectors of Roman coinage. There is no better indication of the desire for this type than the Nelson Bunker Hunt example, which holds the record for the highest price for a Roman coin achieved at auction, having sold in 2008 for CHF 2,000,000 (NGSA 5, 233).