Coin: sestertius, obverse Hadrian; reverse Africa, with Gonzaga Collection mark

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Coin: sestertius, obverse Hadrian; reverse Africa, with Gonzaga Collection mark

Place of OriginRoman Empire

Date134-138 CE

DimensionsMax Diam: 32.74 mm (3.3 cm); Weight: 26.37 grams

MediumOrichalcum (brass alloy), with a silver-inlaid countermark

ClassificationMetalwork

Credit LineGift of the Popplestone Family

Object number

2006.106

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DescriptionThis large brass coin, a sestertius, was minted in Rome between 134 and 138 CE under Emperor Hadrian. On the obverse, Hadrian appears laureate with his titles. The reverse shows Africa personified: a woman wearing an elephant-skin headdress, holding a cornucopia, with a basket of grain and scorpion in her hand.

Label TextThe design belongs to Hadrian’s celebrated province series, in which the empire’s territories were represented by allegorical female figures. These images projected both the abundance of Rome’s provinces and the emperor’s role as unifier of a vast and diverse empire. Africa, with its fertile farmlands and exotic animals, was essential to Rome’s grain supply and to its vision of imperial plenty. Hadrian (117–138 CE) is remembered as one of Rome’s most cosmopolitan rulers. Unlike his predecessors, he traveled widely, personally visiting the provinces depicted on his coinage. His reign emphasized consolidation rather than conquest, investing in infrastructure and civic life across the empire. The province series, struck in Rome but honoring distant lands, symbolized this policy of cultural integration under imperial authority. This coin also bears an unusual later addition: a small stamped eagle inlaid in silver, known as the Gonzaga countermark. It was applied by the dukes of Mantua, powerful Renaissance rulers who assembled one of Europe’s first princely collections of antiquities. From about 1433 until the dispersal of their treasures in 1628, the Gonzaga sought out ancient coins, gems, and marbles, leaving their distinctive mark on many pieces. Though technically a defacement, the countermark is now an important witness to early modern collecting.