Drachm / Half Shekel Punic occupation

The Lucani issued this coinage during the final desperate phase of Hannibal's Italian campaign, when much of southern Italy remained nominally under Carthaginian influence following the catastrophe at Cannae. The "Punic occupation" designation reflects the political reality of communities minting under, or at least alongside, Carthaginian military presence rather than Roman authority. By 207 BC, Hasdrubal's defeat at the Metaurus effectively ended any realistic prospect of Carthaginian consolidation in Italy, and issues of this type ceased accordingly.

The drachm weight standard here is Punic-derived, a deliberate alignment with Carthaginian monetary practice rather than the Roman or Greek systems the region had previously used.