103, Lot: 160. Estimate $2000. Sold for $1500. This amount does not include the buyer’s fee.

TRAJAN. 98-117 AD. Æ Sestertius (34mm, 23.41 gm). Struck 106-111 AD. Laureate and draped bust right / [P]ORTVM TRAIA[NI], S C in exergue, basin of Trajan's harbor at Porto, surrounded by warehouses and ships in center. RIC II 632; Cohen 306 var. (not draped). Fine, green patina. Rare.

Documentation in ancient sources is plentiful concerning the Port of Trajan (cf. Pliny, Ep. 6.31, letter to Cornelianus); however, the exact location of the port is uncertain. Strack claims that it is the harbour of Trajan at Ostia as opposed to that at Centumcellae. Mattingly, however, questions Strack's conclusion. Perhaps future archaeological fieldwork will determine the precise location of the port depicted on this issue.