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Trihemishekel
| Issuer | Carthage |
|---|---|
| Year | 264 BC - 241 BC |
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| Composition | Log in to see details |
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| Reference(s) | GCV#6494, MAA#44, Müller SBZ#103, SNG Copenhagen#190 |
| Obverse description | Facing left, the wreathed head of Tanit, the principal Carthaginian deity, rendered in fine Hellenistic style. The goddess is adorned with a wreath of grain ears symbolising fertility, a beaded necklace, and a distinctive triple-pendant earring. The hair is swept back in loose waves, with strands falling along the neck. The portrait exhibits the characteristic idealized treatment of Sicilian Greek influence prevalent in Carthaginian coinage of the First Punic War period. |
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| Mintage | ND (264 BC - 241 BC) |
| Additional information |
Struck during the First Punic War, when Carthage was financing a prolonged and increasingly desperate naval conflict against Rome. Sicilian mints under Carthaginian control produced much of this coinage to pay mercenary troops — Libyan infantry, Iberian slingers, Gallic cavalry — whose wages were the primary driver of output, not civic or commemorative purpose.
The collapse of Carthaginian silver pay at the war's end in 241 BC directly triggered the Mercenary War, a savage three-year revolt that nearly destroyed the city before Hamilcar Barca suppressed it.