1 As With crescent

Praeneste — modern Palestrina, roughly 35 kilometers east of Rome — operated as a Latin ally during the period this piece was struck, caught between growing Roman dominance and its own municipal identity. The crescent mark distinguishes Praenestine aes grave from the unmarked Roman series, almost certainly functioning as a control symbol rather than a denominational indicator. These heavy cast bronzes were produced before Rome fully standardized allied coinage practices following the Second Punic War.