Æ15

Carthage struck bronze coinage relatively late compared to its Sicilian neighbors, adopting the practice largely through contact with Greek minting traditions during the intense military campaigns of the late fifth and early fourth centuries BC. These small bronzes circulated primarily in Sicily and North Africa as Carthage expanded its monetary economy to pay mercenary troops and facilitate trade in contested territories. The specific series to which this piece belongs has been associated with Carthaginian mints operating in western Sicily rather than Carthage proper — a detail still debated among specialists working from hoard evidence.