★ Rare & tiny Punic War as ★

Anonymous AE Reduced As, c. 211-200 BCE. Apulia, 2.35g, 16mm.
Obv: Laureate head of Janus, mark of value below, two pellets above
Rev: Prow right, mark of value above and before, ROMA below.
cf. Crawford 97/28 and 99/10 (Luceria)
Rare, and a nice example; also the tiniest AE As you are likely to come across!

Andrew McCabe regards these tiny asses (at roughly a 3g standard) as unofficial issues (largely found in Apulia), to be contrasted with the Lucerian emergency issues 97/28 and 99/10 with which they are often confused. (The Lucerian asses are at a higher weight standard of about 6g). They were presumably issued during the chaos and hardship caused Hannibal’s romp through Italy, so not just numismatically but historically very interesting.