The Cessetani were an Iberian people centered around the region of modern Tarragona — Kesse in ancient sources — whose coinage reflects the broader pattern of indigenous minting that flourished under Roman administrative tolerance during the late Republic. Rome generally permitted provincial peoples to strike small bronze for local exchange, provided silver remained a Roman monopoly. This half-unit fits squarely within that arrangement.
The reference span of sixty years is unusually long for a series this small, and scholars have not resolved the chronology with confidence. ACIP 1203 and CNH 170 designate the same type by different cataloging traditions, a common source of confusion in Iberian numismatics.
The Cessetani were an Iberian people centered around the region of modern Tarragona — Kesse in ancient sources — whose coinage reflects the broader pattern of indigenous minting that flourished under Roman administrative tolerance during the late Republic. Rome generally permitted provincial peoples to strike small bronze for local exchange, provided silver remained a Roman monopoly. This half-unit fits squarely within that arrangement.
The reference span of sixty years is unusually long for a series this small, and scholars have not resolved the chronology with confidence. ACIP 1203 and CNH 170 designate the same type by different cataloging traditions, a common source of confusion in Iberian numismatics.