Trajan, AD 98-117, Denarius

Trajan, denarius, AR, emperor AD 98–117, Rome, AD 116–117, 3.80 g, 19 mm. Laureate head of Trajan right; IMP CAES NER TRAIAN OPTIM AVG GER DAC PARTHICO. Providentia standing left, holding sceptre and cornucopia; P M TR P COS VI P P around, S P Q R in field, PROVID in exergue. Struck at Rome; in the photographs the surfaces appear notably granular and irregular, and an in‑hand assessment of fabric and authenticity is advisable. RIC II 361.

The obverse legend with PARTHICO dates this issue to AD 116–117, after Trajan’s assumption of the Parthicus title during his Mesopotamian campaign. The reverse proclaims the institutional backing of the Senate and People of Rome (S P Q R) and features Providentia, the personification of state foresight, aligning with Trajan’s late propaganda themes. The titulature P M TR P COS VI P P records his chief priesthood, tribunician power, sixth consulship (retained from AD 112 onward), and status as pater patriae, situating the coin within Rome’s late Trajanic series commemorating eastern successes and orderly governance.