For most of the time that the Greeks and Romans struck coins, non-Greek/Roman tribes throughout Europe also struck coins, often in imitation of widely circulated "legitimate" types. These were especially useful for trade with Greeks or Romans. Before the Roman empire evolved, Celtic tribes throughout Europe—in Spain, Gaul, Britain, and the Balkans—struck both imitative coins and original designs.

These became much less common once the Romans incorporated most of those lands in the empire, but the practice revived in the 3rd century when the empire was besieged on all fronts and the economy was under severe stress. Such coins were relatively common in the decades before Diocletian came to power, when rebels controlled both Gaul and Britain and Germanic invaders rampaged through Europe. However, Diocletian's reforms made these coins rare during his reign. The robust system of mints that he established on the empire's frontier ensured that all parts of the empire were supplied with adequate coinage. Imitative coins became common again in the late 4th century, after the London mint was closed and Roman authority on the empire's fringes began to wane.