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3 Shekel - Hamilcar Barca
| Issuer | Gadir (Punic Iberia) |
|---|---|
| Year | 227 BC - 221 BC |
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| Value | Trishekel (6) |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Obverse description | Bare male head facing left, traditionally identified as Hamilcar Barca or a Barcid ruler, rendered in fine Hellenistic style with deeply modeled features. The hair is elaborately dressed in voluminous wavy locks swept back from the forehead, bound by a plain diadem with hanging ties falling behind the neck. The portrait displays a strong jawline, almond-shaped eye, and slightly parted lips, reflecting the artistic sophistication of Punic coinage from the Iberian workshops. The field is plain, and the entire composition fills the flan with commanding authority. No legend or inscription appears. |
|---|---|
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| Mint | Gadir (modern Cádiz, Spain) |
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| Additional information |
Gadir — modern Cádiz — was the oldest Phoenician settlement in Iberia and functioned as the financial base for Barcid military operations throughout the peninsula. These heavy silver pieces were almost certainly struck to pay mercenary troops during the aggressive territorial expansion Hamilcar conducted between his arrival in 237 BC and his death by drowning in battle against the Vettones around 229 BC, meaning the issue continued under his son-in-law Hasdrubal.
The Barcid commanders operated with extraordinary autonomy from Carthage — closer to independent warlords than provincial governors — and their coinage reflects that, issued on Punic weight standards detached from any Carthaginian mint authority.