2058 | Celtiberian coins

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EBUSUS (Ibiza). 1/4 Tracing. (Ae. 3.34g / 17mm). 200-100 BC (FAB-923). VF. Beautiful specimen, rare and more like that.

Throughout its first period of production, around 218 BC, the Ebusus mint issued low value numeraire, with the image of the god Bes as the main type and that of the bull as secondary. At the time of its opening, the workshop minted a fraction of silver and two values of bronze, but soon it produced exclusively bronze. The first emissions were of acceptable quality and with several variations in the Bes design. Later, the mint produced more massive, but also more monotonous and neglected emissions, in which the deity was engraved with schematic traces on blanks whose metallic composition often contained a high percentage of lead. Despite the fact that very considerable quantities of coins from the initial period of the Ebusus workshop have been found, showing the high rate of monetization of its inhabitants, determining the intensity of the Mediterranean projection of the first Ebusitan issues is a complex question. At the moment there are few finds of Ibizan pieces located outside the island.

The Ebusus coin and its Mediterranean projection. Marta Campo.