In 629, Heraclius reduced the number of Eastern mints and limited minting for the eastern half of the Empire to Constantinople and Alexandria (though the latter was lost to the Arabs in 646). Provincial mints continued in the West in such cities as Ravenna, Rome and Carthage for as long as these outlying parts of the Empire remained in imperial possession. After the mid-8th century no mint marks were used at all, and even when provincial mints are known to have existed, notably in Syracuse and Thessalonica, the imperial administration apparently saw no reason to distinguish its coins in any way that would identify their source (photos right).