Semis - Augustus D D

Carteia, situated near modern San Roque on the Bay of Gibraltar, was the first Roman colony established in Hispania, founded in 171 BC to legitimize the offspring of Roman soldiers and local Iberian women. By the Augustan period it retained the rare privilege of striking its own bronze coinage under local magistrates — the abbreviation D D on this piece reflects a decree of the local decuriones, the colonial town council, authorizing the issue. Few municipia in Hispania retained that autonomy this late.