Lot 99: TRAJAN. 98-117 AD. Æ Sestertius. Rome mint. Struck 116 AD.

TRAJAN. 98-117 AD. Æ Sestertius (34mm - 24.74 g). Rome mint. Struck 116 AD. IMP CAES NER TRAIANO OPTIMO AVG GER DAC PARTHICO P M TR P COS VI P P, laureate and draped bust right, seen from behind / REX PARTHIS DATVS, S C in exergue, Trajan, laureate and in miltary outfit, seated left on camp bench set on daïs, presenting Parthamaspates, who is touching his crown, to Parthia kneeling right; military figure standing behind Trajan. RIC II 667; BMCRE 1045; BN 920. VF, original green and brown patina, some small chips in the patina around the edge.

With the conquest of Dacia ensued an interval of relative peace, until in 114 trouble began with the Parthians on the eastern frontier. The Parthians placed their own nominee in Armenia as king, thereby upsetting the balance of power that existed in the East with Armenia acting as a buffer-state between Rome and Parthia. Trajan responded with military force; he annexed Armenia as another Roman province and then extended operations into Mesopotamia. By 116, he had conquered the whole of Mesopotamia, including the Parthian capital of Ctesiphon. Trajan's intervention in Parthian affairs proved short-lived. The rival kings Vologases III and Osroes I continued to fight for the throne, and Parthamaspates' role as Roman puppet did not last beyond the withdrawal of the legions from Parthian territory after Trajan's death in 117 AD. Hadrian finally installed him as a minor king in Armenia.

• Offered By: VAuctions
• Lot #: 99
• Listing #: 202062
• Closed: Thursday, October 30, 2008 8:16:00 PM CT
• Estimate: $500