Hadrian Visits Egypt
Hadrian. AD 117-138. AR Denarius (18mm, 3.41 g, 6h). “Travel series” issue. Rome mint. Struck circa AD 134-138. HADRIANVS AVG COS III P P, laureate head right / AEGYPTOS, Egypt reclining left, holding sistrum in right hand, resting left arm on basket; at feet, ibis standing right. RIC II 297; Strack 294; RSC 100; BMCRE 801. EF, surfaces a bit overcleaned. With a detailed and captivating figure of Egypt.
Hadrian visited Egypt during his great tour of the East AD 129-131. He was accompanied by a large entourage including his wife Sabina, her friend the poetess Julia Balbilla, and his young constant companion Antinous, who perished in a rather mysterious drowning in the Nile. The experience seems to have killed Hadrian’s wanderlust, for he returned to Italy and spent his remaining years holed up at his beautiful villa in Tivoli, which included many poignant remembrances of Egypt. On this “travel series” denarius, Egypt is represented by the goddess Isis, who rests her elbow on a basket symbolizing Egypt’s importance as a granary for the Empire, and holds a type of rattle called a sistrum used in religious ceremonies.
