Roma Numismatics Ltd
Auction XVII 28 Mar 2019
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North Africa, Carthage AR Trishekel. First Punic War, circa 264-241 BC. Head of Tanit (Kore-Persephone) to left, wearing barley-wreath, triple pendant earring and necklace / Horse standing to right; palm tree in background. MAA 43; Müller, Afrique 100; SNG Copenhagen 189 var. (pellets); SNG Lloyd -; Basel -; Gulbenkian -; de Luynes 3773. 18.84g, 31mm, 12h.
Good Very Fine; Extremely Rare; in exemplary condition for the type - one of only 3 examples on CoinArchives.
Ex Georges Bouchereau and Robert Boyer Collection, Triton XVIII, 6 January 2015, lot 403 (hammer: $19,000).
The great emergency that warranted the striking of this large-denomination issue can be found in the conflict which came to be known as the First Punic War, begun in 264 BC, that required Carthage to assemble a vast mercenary army to meet the Roman threat in Sicily. According to Philinos of Agrigentum this army comprised 50,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, and 60 elephants including Ligurians, Celts and Iberians (see Polybius, The Histories, 1:17.4). Such a large mercenary army entailed a considerable outlay of money, and as the struggle dragged on over a period of more than twenty years the Carthaginian state steadily edged ever closer to bankruptcy under the strain the war effort placed on its coffers.
Trishekels were struck in three issues during the First Punic War: the present issue with horse and palm, the other two with horse and uraeus on the reverse. The abrupt (and what must have been alarming) decline of the metal quality between this early issue and the later ones is indicative of the dire straits which the Carthaginian state was reduced to, and its rapidly dwindling precious metal supply. The situation was not ameliorated even after the conclusion of the war; as part of the peace settlement Carthage was required to give up "all islands lying between Sicily and Italy", immediately pay Rome a sum of 1,000 talents of gold, and pay a further 2,000 talents over a period of 10 years. These conditions were deliberately intended to compromise Carthage's economic integrity and prevent the city's recovery. After meeting the Roman demands, a destitute Carthage now found itself having to find additional funds to pay the wages of its defeated but still enormous mercenary army. Negotiations between the mercenaries and the Carthaginian state quickly broke down, and despite the Carthaginian officials capitulating to the mercenary demands, open rebellion ensued based on speculation that Carthage would be unable to pay. The Libyan population, discontent under Carthaginian rule (and perhaps justifiably so, for their soldiers were conscripted and not paid as mercenaries) joined the rebels.
This rebellion is referred to as the Libyan Revolt, the Mercenary War or the Truceless War, on account of it exceeding all other conflicts in cruelty, ending only with the total annihilation of one of the opponents. Although ultimately the rebellion was put down by Hamilcar Barca with a combined army of existing loyal mercenaries and newly hired ones together with citizen soldiers, culminating at the Battle of 'The Saw' with some 50,000 rebels killed or executed, Carthage was left effectively penniless, internally weakened and externally virtually defenceless against a still belligerent Roman Republic.
Good Very Fine; Extremely Rare; in exemplary condition for the type - one of only 3 examples on CoinArchives.
Ex Georges Bouchereau and Robert Boyer Collection, Triton XVIII, 6 January 2015, lot 403 (hammer: $19,000).
The great emergency that warranted the striking of this large-denomination issue can be found in the conflict which came to be known as the First Punic War, begun in 264 BC, that required Carthage to assemble a vast mercenary army to meet the Roman threat in Sicily. According to Philinos of Agrigentum this army comprised 50,000 infantry, 6,000 cavalry, and 60 elephants including Ligurians, Celts and Iberians (see Polybius, The Histories, 1:17.4). Such a large mercenary army entailed a considerable outlay of money, and as the struggle dragged on over a period of more than twenty years the Carthaginian state steadily edged ever closer to bankruptcy under the strain the war effort placed on its coffers.
Trishekels were struck in three issues during the First Punic War: the present issue with horse and palm, the other two with horse and uraeus on the reverse. The abrupt (and what must have been alarming) decline of the metal quality between this early issue and the later ones is indicative of the dire straits which the Carthaginian state was reduced to, and its rapidly dwindling precious metal supply. The situation was not ameliorated even after the conclusion of the war; as part of the peace settlement Carthage was required to give up "all islands lying between Sicily and Italy", immediately pay Rome a sum of 1,000 talents of gold, and pay a further 2,000 talents over a period of 10 years. These conditions were deliberately intended to compromise Carthage's economic integrity and prevent the city's recovery. After meeting the Roman demands, a destitute Carthage now found itself having to find additional funds to pay the wages of its defeated but still enormous mercenary army. Negotiations between the mercenaries and the Carthaginian state quickly broke down, and despite the Carthaginian officials capitulating to the mercenary demands, open rebellion ensued based on speculation that Carthage would be unable to pay. The Libyan population, discontent under Carthaginian rule (and perhaps justifiably so, for their soldiers were conscripted and not paid as mercenaries) joined the rebels.
This rebellion is referred to as the Libyan Revolt, the Mercenary War or the Truceless War, on account of it exceeding all other conflicts in cruelty, ending only with the total annihilation of one of the opponents. Although ultimately the rebellion was put down by Hamilcar Barca with a combined army of existing loyal mercenaries and newly hired ones together with citizen soldiers, culminating at the Battle of 'The Saw' with some 50,000 rebels killed or executed, Carthage was left effectively penniless, internally weakened and externally virtually defenceless against a still belligerent Roman Republic.