Potin with confronted animals Class I

The Suessiones occupied the Aisne valley in what Caesar identified as one of the most powerful polities in Belgic Gaul, capable of fielding tens of thousands of warriors. Their potin issues — cast rather than struck, distinguishing them immediately from coin-producing neighbors — circulated during precisely the decade Caesar systematically dismantled their independence, culminating in the siege of Noviodunum around 57 BC. Whether these pieces continued circulating under Roman occupation or dropped out of use abruptly is an open question the archaeological record has not settled cleanly.