257, Lot: 405. Estimate $300. Sold for $425. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

Hadrian. AD 117-138. Æ Sestertius (32mm, 24.96 g, 5h). Rome mint. Struck circa AD 134-138. Draped bust right / Hadrian advancing right, holding scroll, followed by three soldiers carrying signa and an officer holding a staff. RIC II 746. Fine, dark river patina. Rare.

From the Sierra Collection.

The discussion in RIC notes that this reverse type "celebrates the military reforms of the Emperor", without defining what specific event triggered the commemoration on this sestertius. It is most likely related to the conclusion of the last great military campaign of Hadrian's reign, the Bar Kochba revolt in Judaea (132-135 AD). As an internal revolt, not an operation against foreign foes, the war did not warrant a coinage commemorating its end, but this coin would indirectly mark its conclusion, praising the legions for their steadfastness while stressing the re-ordering of the armies for peacetime and the standing down from a war footing.