133 NGC Ch XF Hadrian Roman Egypt Alexandria Tetradrachm Serapis Cerberus Dog (21090501C)
Choice Extremely Fine Emperor Hadrian dated Roman Egypt Alexandria billon silver tetradrachm coin.
Minted in Hadrian's 18th (L IH = year 18) Alexandrian year which corresponds to 133/4 CE.
A well struck high grade exampled with silvered surfaces (rare as such).
Certified by NGC to Ch XF, Strike 4/5, Surface 3/5.
Emmett 892/18.
Obverse: Right facing cuirassed bust of Hadrian.
Reverse: Serapis seated left with Cerberus, date letters LI H.
The cult of Serapis was introduced during the third century BC on the orders of Pharaoh Ptolemy I Soter of the Ptolemaic Kingdom as a means to unify the Greeks and Egyptians in his realm. A serapeum was any temple or religious precinct devoted to Serapis. The cultus of Serapis was spread as a matter of deliberate policy by the Ptolemaic kings, who also built the immense Serapeum of Alexandria. Serapis continued to increase in popularity during the Roman Empire, often replacing Osiris as the consort of Isis in temples outside Egypt. Cerberus was a three-headed dog that guarded the entrance of the Underworld.
