Hadrian, 117-138, Denarius

Hadrian, Denarius, AR, AD 117–138; Rome, c. AD 119–122, 2.99 g, 18.3 mm. Obv: HADRIANVS AVGVSTVS; laureate head right. Rev: COS III within laurel wreath. Struck at Rome for the COS III issue marking Hadrian’s third consulship early in the reign. RIC II, Part 3 (2nd ed.) 852–853.

Hadrian’s assumption of the consulship for the third time in AD 119 marked the stabilization of imperial governance after Trajan’s expansionist wars. Denarii of the COS III series belong to the early Rome-mint output and emphasize his magistracy and constitutional authority, signaling continuity and legitimacy at the outset of his policy of consolidation and administrative reform that preceded his extensive travels and later thematic coinage.