Hey! Carthage came in today!

I love the History of the major Punic World War II with Rome (218-201 BCE). Rome (as WELL as Carthage) was tested to their limits.

This was the War where Hannibal crossed the Alps with a bunch of elephants, and terrorized the Italia peninsula for around a dozen years. Where Rome, within an 18 month period lost upwards of 200,000 Soldiers in 3 major battles (Trebia, Trasimene, and Cannae)... some estimate that this was 20% of all men within Rome's fledgling Empire... Wow. Still, despite these losses, despite the despair, Rome PERSEVERED and ultimately WON the 2nd Punic War!



https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Second_Punic_War

Here is a Half-Shekel (about a Denarius in size) from the OTHER World Power, Carthage. It was minted right after those nasty 3 Battles that left Rome decimated times TWO... during Rome's lowest point, during their darkest years.


Carthage Zeugitania
AR ½ Shekel 17mm 3.8g
2nd Punic War 218-202 BCE
Sicily mint 216-211 BCE
Obv: Tanit wreath of grains bust left
Rev: Standing Horse right, Sun as double Uraeus
SNG COP 359 (my re-attribution, originally SNG COP 352)

(Looks like Tanit has a creepy little smile that says: "Yeah, Rome, we just KICKED your BUTT!)

PILE ON ANY COOL COINS OR COOL POSTS THAT ARE PERTINENT!

 

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I am a big fan of Carthage's coins.

John

 

Nice coin, but your boys got their rear ends whipped by my boys.



My coin is relevant because it was minted in southern Italy by a military traveling mint during the time the Romans were trying to retake southern Italy from Hannibal.

These little coins paid to spank Hannibal's rear end in southern Italy shortly before he had to flee to defend Carthage from Scipio Africanus.

LOL, dream on. By the time your coin was minted, probably in the last decade of the 200's BCE, the tide of war was turning and Rome was starting to spank Carthage once again. That look on Tanit's face is the look of a masochist enjoying the whipping Roma was administering. Roma was a talented dominatrix.

 

Nice half-shekel @Alegandron! Great details, love the obverse.

 

Great coin @Alegandron
Love Carthage coins aswell myself, but my wallet doesn't

Q

 

Wow @Alegandron , that is a superb coin! Congrats on a great pickup.

 

Very nice coin, but one ugly rendition of Tanit!

 

Dude, you are singing to the choir...I have beau coup RR's!

But this coin was minted 216-211... when Carthage was really feared.

 

Yeah, agreed. Almost a Kegelwangel Celtic imitation or like the later Empresses with the Emperors face and a hairstyle! LOL, usually, I subliminally look at the REVERSE of a Carthage coin FIRST. I love the Horses!

 

Lovely half-shekel!

 

Love the coin @Alegandron
Maybe next year I'll be able to add to my one Carthage coin. Like you I love the history full of military might.

 

Awesome coin @Alegandron!! I'm still without a coin from Carthage... I should change that soon.

 

Man what a cool score. I too share your passion about this period/war. Here's my humble contribution:


Carthaginians in Hispania
AE 1/4 Calco, 1.5g, 13mm; mobile military mint, 218-208 BC.
Obv.: Wreathed head of Tanit left.
Rev.: Crested helmet left, with cheek guards.

 

CARTHAGO.DELENDA.EST

Yeah, examining these 100% accurate reenactment photos of the Roman army, I think I finally understand why Hannibal did not stand a chance against Scipio Africanus.

 

That's a sweet looking coin Alegandon! I'm seriously under Carthaged.

 

Wonderful addition! I'm jealous.

 

Shortly after the major Roman losses at Trasimene and Trebia, Rome was in trouble. Massive military expenditure was needed and the inflow of raw materials, includimg silver and bronze, was thwarted by the marauding Carthaginians. This led to a reduction in the fineness of the AR quadrigatus, the primary silver coin of the time. It also led to the semilibral reduction in the bronze coinage - when the weight standard of AE coinage was reduced from an AE As of one Roman pound to an AE As of half a pound - in about 217 BCE. This weight standard reduction encouraged production of struck bronze coins for use in Rome and central Italy. Previously, struck bronzes were largely a southern Italian animal, with cast aes grave and aes signatum being the primary bronze currency in Rome and central Italy. The semilibral struck bronzes took two forms: the standard prow types of Crawford 38; and the so-called "collateral" series of semilibral bronzes of Crawford 39.

The Crawford 39 series of semilibral struck bronzes consists of triens, quadrans, sextans, uncia and semiuncia. It's one of the most beautiful and interesting of the Roman struck bronze series, partly because the coins don't seem very "Roman" in style. Indeed, before Crawford, most scholars attributed these coins as Romano- Campanian. Crawford attributes them to Rome mint.

I'm fortunate to have four of the five Crawford 39 denominations in my collection. All are 217-215 BCE, during the depths of Rome's Second Punic War despair.

AE Triens. Crawford 39/1.
O: Head of Juno with crested diadem and scepter on left shoulder; mark of value behind.
R: Hercules preparing to stike centaur with club: mark of value before centaur; ROMA below.
Ex Münzen und Medaillen Auction (1972):




AE Sextans (26g). Crawford 39/3.
O: Wolf suckling twins, Romulus and Remus; mark of value in exergue.
R: Eagle holding leaf or flower; mark of value behind; ROMA before
Ex Sternberg 1989:





AE Uncia (12g). Crawford 39/4.
O: Facing head of Helios; mark of value to left.
R: Crescent moon with two stars; mark of value between stars.
Ex RBW Collection; purchased by RBW from Ed Waddell in 1993:



AE Semiuncia. Crawford 39/5.
O: Turreted female (Roma?) head right.
R: Rider galloping r, extending whip; ROMA below.
Ex RBW Collection; purchased from I-forget-who in 1989:

 

WOW @Carausius ! Really nice. Really nice... these are great! That Sextans is wonderful!

I only have 2 varieties of Crawford 39's:


RR Anon AE Semuncia 217-215 BC Turreted Horseman Whip Roma Craw 39-5 Sear 619


RR Anon AE Semuncia 217-215 BC Turreted Horseman Whip Roma 2 Cr 39-5 S 619


RR Anon AE Sextans 217-215 BCE She-Wolf Twins Eagle Syd 95 Cr 39-3 S 609

 

"I-forget-who" is an impeccible provenance; one of great intrigue and mystery that piqued the curiousity of numismatists for generations.

 

Ha! Glad someone noticed. I was not home when typing this, so all provenance info etc is from memory. Best to admit I can't recall than to manufacture a provenance. A keen reader would have noticed that I didn't include precise weights for all the coins, or that the auction provenance info was kinda shorthand - again, all from memory!