ZEUGITANA BILLON SHEKEL – LIBYAN REVOLT ISSUE WITH HERACLES AND LION – AU NGC GRADED GREEK CARTHAGE COIN (Inv. 19092)

$1,950.00

19092. CARTHAGE. ZEUGITANA. LIBYAN REVOLT, ca. 241–238/7 BC.
Billon shekel, 9.04 g, 25 mm.
Obv. Head of Heracles left, wearing lion skin. Rev. Lion prowling right, Punic letter M above, ΛΙΒΥΩN in exergue.
Carradice & La Niece, “The Libyan War and Coinage,” Numismatic Chronicle 1988, p. 34, no. 1; SNG Copenhagen 239–243.
NGC graded AU, Strike 3/5, Surface 4/5, “overstruck,” particularly nice for the type, with minimal traces of the undertype which often disfigures the new design.

The Libyan Revolt of 241–238/7 BC, also known as the Mercenary War, or the Truceless War, was a conflict that erupted between the Punic paymasters of Carthage and some 20,000 North African mercenary troops who had fought in First Punic War (264–241 BC) but remained unpaid at its conclusion. In an effort to exact payment, they besieged Carthage and raised their Libyan home cities in rebellion, but they were ultimately defeated by Hamilcar Barca and their leaders were crucified. Interestingly, while the primary grievance that sparked the revolt was the lack of pay, during the conflict the Libyan mercenaries actually struck their own coinage like the present shekel. However, the evident scarcity of precious metal forced them to produce their coins with heavily debased silver. The legend is notable for naming the Libyans as a unified ethnic group while the depiction of Heracles alludes to his travels in Lydia while seeking out the Garden of the Hesperides and the tradition that he was an ancestor of the Libyan peoples.