Tarraco (Tarragona) was an important centre for the Visigoths. The coinages of its mint cover a long period of reigns ranging from Leovigild to Achila II, that is from the year 575 to 713-714 AD. Reccared, son of Leovigild, was the King of the Visigoths from 586 to 601 AD. Minted under his rule, this tremiss had a value of a third of the aureus solidus, the currency then used as a reference for trade valued at 25 silver denarii.

The Visigoths monetary system was based on gold and coins were minted exclusively in that metal. We ought to add that all the coins of that time currently preserved are in excellent condition, leading us to believe that they did not circulate widely. There is some speculation that these coins were merely of propagandistic value, aimed at legitimising the power itself rather than acting as an everyday element in the commercial and economic life of the inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula who, on the other hand, continued using the coins minted during the Roman imperial period.

The artistic quality of the elements represented in the Visigothic coins is rather low to the point that they sometimes on the grotesque.

Obverse: A sketched frontal bust of a draped Reccared surrounded by two crosses. Dotted and legend:

RECCAREDUS REX

Reverse: Similar to the obverse and with the legend:

TARRACONA PIUS