Hadrian, 117-138, Tetradrachm

Hadrian, Tetradrachm, AR, AD 117–138; Alexandria, Year 16 (AD 131/2), 12.61 g, 24 mm. Laureate head of Hadrian right; legend ΑΥΤ ΚΑΙ ΤΡΑΙ ΑΔΡΙΑ ϹΕΒ. Reverse bearing the regnal year mark L ΙϚ (16) in field. Struck at Alexandria on the provincial tetradrachm standard with Greek legends and regnal dating. Recorded in RPC III 5789.

Issued for the closed-currency system of Roman Egypt, Alexandrian tetradrachms served as the primary silver denomination and were dated by the emperor’s regnal year using the L + numeral convention. Year 16 corresponds to AD 131/2, providing a precise chronological anchor within Hadrian’s reign and the Egyptian monetary series, which operated separately from the imperial denarius system and reflects the province’s special administrative status under the emperor.