The representation of Judaea on Hadrian’s coins

Abstract

ABSTRACT Emperor Hadrian is known for his passion for travels. However, his action was driven by specific political goals. These goals were related to the need to unify the Roman empire. The emperor was aware that relations between the ancient cities and the colonies founded by his predecessors had to be rebalanced. Between 134 and 138, the emperor Hadrian and the Senate minted an enormous variety of coins that featured some of the provinces, and occasionally the cities, of the Roman empire. There are essentially three types of monetary issuances representing the provinces during the reign of Hadrian: the Natio (or Provincia) type; the Adventus type; the Restitutor type. Among them, the coins depicting the personification of Judaea constitute a special issuance that needs a more detailed analysis. In particular, the unusual presence of various numbers of children has already attracted several scholars, but the meaning of their presence is still unknown. This paper aims to study these coins in order to highlight the relationship between Hadrian and Judaea.