Calabria, Tarentum. Punic occupation, circa 212-209 BC. Half shekel

Calabria, Tarentum. Punic occupation, circa 212-209 BC. Half shekel (Silver, 18.68 mm, 3.93 g). Magistrate Kritos. KPITO-Σ Youth on horseback right, crowning the horse and holding palm branch. Rev. TAPAΣ Phalanthos riding dolphin left, holding trident; Nike flying left to crown him; monograms EK-ΞΩ in fields. HN Italy 1080; Vlasto 978-980; SNG ANS 1269; SNG Copenhagen 950; HGC 1, 932. Well struck, with sharp details. About uncirculated. A superb example of Tarentine silver from one of the city’s most dramatic historical moments, struck after Tarentum admitted Hannibal’s forces during the Second Punic War. The coinage of this occupation period reflects a delicate political balance: the types remain emphatically Tarentine, with the horseman and dolphin-rider continuing the city’s long civic tradition, but the denomination is adjusted to the Punic shekel standard, aligning the issue with Carthaginian military finance. The magistrate Kritos belongs to the late civic administration of Tarentum under Hannibalic control. His name appears prominently on the obverse, while the reverse preserves the city ethnic TAPAΣ and the foundation hero Phalanthos, who was closely identified with Tarentine identity. The addition of Nike crowning the dolphin-rider gives the reverse a pointedly triumphal tone, appropriate to a city then positioned against Rome and allied with Carthage. This issue belongs to the brief period between Tarentum’s defection to Hannibal in 212 BC and the Roman recovery of the city in 209 BC. As such, it is among the last meaningful silver issues of independent Tarentum. The exceptional preservation is notable, since these occupation half shekels often show weak striking, die wear, or circulation marks. This piece, sharply struck and nearly as made, is an especially desirable representative of the final phase of Tarentine silver.