Coins and Antiquities Consignment Shop
  Welcome To Forum Ancient Coins!!! All Items Purchased From Forum Ancient Coins Are Guaranteed Authentic For Eternity!!! Please Call Us If You Have Questions 252-646-1958 or 252-497-2724 Expert Authentication - Accurate Descriptions - Reasonable Prices - Coins From Under $10 To Museum Quality Rarities Welcome To Forum Ancient Coins!!! All Items Purchased From Forum Ancient Coins Are Guaranteed Authentic For Eternity!!! Internet Challenged? We Are Happy To Take Your Order Over The Phone 252-646-1958 Explore Our Website And Find Joy In The History, Numismatics, Art, Mythology, And Geography Of Coins!!!

×Catalog Main Menu
Fine Coins Showcase

Antiquities Showcase
New & Reduced


Show Empty Categories
Shop Search
Shopping Cart
My FORVM
Contact Us
About Forum
Shopping at Forum
Our Guarantee
Payment Options
Shipping Options & Fees
Privacy & Security
Forum Staff
Selling Your Coins
Identifying Your Coin
FAQs
zoom.asp
   View Categories
Home ▸ Catalog ▸ |Greek Coins| ▸ |Geographic - All Periods| ▸ |Judaea & Palestine||View Options:  |  |  |   

Ancient coins of Judaea and Palestine

Coins of Judaea and Palestine are also presented in our Judean and Biblical catalog section. Here all coins of Judaea and Palestine are grouped together. In our Judean and Biblical catalog section coins are organized by types and rulers and are presented with additional historical information and biblical references.

Judaea (Yehudah), Ptolemaic Rule, Ptolemy II Philadelphos, 285 - 246 B.C.

|Greek| |Domination|, |Judaea| |(Yehudah),| |Ptolemaic| |Rule,| |Ptolemy| |II| |Philadelphos,| |285| |-| |246| |B.C.||1/4| |drachm|
This is apparently only the second known specimen of this type. All the references given describe the same coin and the plates share photos of a single specimen from the S. Moussaeiff Collection. This coin was struck with the same obverse die but it appears to be from a different reverse die. See the Moussaeiff Collection coin here.
JD99501. Silver 1/4 drachm, Hendin 6088 (RRR); Lorber CPE 710; Gitler-Lorber II Group 7, 15; Deutsch Unrecorded 4; Meshorer TJC -; Mildenberg Yehud -, gVF, toned, deposits, obv. off center, edge splits, weight 0.876 g, maximum diameter 10.4 mm, die axis 315o, Jerusalem mint, probably 272 - 261/0 B.C.; obverse diademed head of Ptolemy I right; reverse eagle standing half left on thunderbolt, wings open, head left, Aramaic, Aramaic (YHDH) on left, read right to left (upward); ex CNG auction 117 (19-20 May 2001), lot 328 (listed in error as the much smaller and less rare quarter ma'ah); $19000.00 (€17480.00)
 


Judaea, Achaemenid Persian Yehud Province, c. 375 - 332 B.C.

|Persian| |Rule|, |Judaea,| |Achaemenid| |Persian| |Yehud| |Province,| |c.| |375| |-| |332| |B.C.||gerah|
"The notable relationship between man and his god was that between supplicant and listener: the supplicant voices his prayer and entreaties to his god, and the god listens and tries to carry out his wishes. Thus the god's most important organ was his ear that heard the prayer..." -- Y. Meshorer in A Treasury of Jewish Coins.

"Incline Thine ear, O Lord, and answer me" (Psalms 86:1)

"for ye have wept in the ears of the Lord" (Numbers 11:18).
JD99503. Silver gerah, Hendin 6060 (RR), Menorah Coin Project YHD 13 (01/R1), Meshorer TJC 18, HGC 10 440, Bromberg -, Shoshana -, Sofaer -, VF, toned, off center, light marks and scratches, die wear, edge split, weight 0.295 g, maximum diameter 8.2 mm, Jerusalem (or nearby) mint, c. 350 - 332 B.C.; obverse ear (of God?); reverse falcon upward, head right, wings open, Aramaic (YHD) on right, read right to left (upward); very rare; $4200.00 (€3864.00)
 


Persian Empire, Samaria, c. 375 - 332 B.C.

|Persian| |Rule|, |Persian| |Empire,| |Samaria,| |c.| |375| |-| |332| |B.C.||drachm|
Samaria was the capital of the northern Kingdom of Israel in the 9th - 8th centuries B.C. The Assyrians took the city and the northern kingdom in 722/721 B.C. The city did not recover until the Persian period, the mid 5th century. The tensions between the ruling Sanballat family and Jerusalem under the governorship of Nehemiah are documented in the Bible (Ezra 4:10, Neh 4:7–8). Samaria became Hellenistic in 332 B.C. Thousands of Macedonian soldiers were settled there following a revolt. The Judaean king John Hyrcanus destroyed Samaria in 108 B.C., but it was resettled under Alexander Jannaeus. In 63 B.C., Samaria was annexed to the Roman province of Syria. Herod the Great fortified the city and renamed it Sebaste. The ruins are located in the Samaria mountains almost 10 km to the northwest of Nablus.
JD99500. Silver drachm, Meshorer-Qedar 30; Samuels 6; Mildenberg Bes pl. 1, 5; Sofaer -; SNG ANS -; Hendin -; HGC 10 -, VF, centered, toned, edge split, a little rough, weight 2.565 g, maximum diameter 17.7 mm, die axis 0o, Samaria (Sebastia, West Bank) mint, c. 375 - 332 B.C.; obverse horned head of creature facing (griffin?) within square guilloche-pattern border; reverse winged and horned griffin recumbent right, Aramaic dalat (for Delayah?) above left, square guilloche-pattern border, all within an incuse square; extremely rare; $3850.00 (€3542.00)
 


Judaea, Achaemenid Persian Yehud Province, c. 375 - 332 B.C.

|Persian| |Rule|, |Judaea,| |Achaemenid| |Persian| |Yehud| |Province,| |c.| |375| |-| |332| |B.C.||half| |ma|
Yehud, or Yehud Medinata (Aramaic for Province of Judah), was a province of the Persian Achaemenid Empire which corresponded to the previous Babylonian province of Yehud, which was formed after the fall of the kingdom of Judah to the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 597 B.C. The territory, which was ruled by mostly Jewish governors, was considerably smaller and held a far smaller population than the kingdom of Judah before the Babylonian conquest. Yehud existed until the area was incorporated into the empires of Alexander the Great and his successors.
JD99502. Silver half ma, Hendin 6062 (RR), Menorah Coin Project YHD 15 (01/R1), Meshorer TJC -, Bromberg -, Shoshana -, Sofaer -, Spaer Coll. -, HGC 10 -, F, dark toning, off center, weight 0.339 g, maximum diameter 8.3 mm, die axis 180o, Jerusalem (or nearby) mint, c. 350 - 332 B.C.; obverse incense bowl with flame and smoke; reverse falcon upward, head right, wings open, Aramaic (YHD) on right, read right to left (upward); Coin Archives records only one specimen of the type at auction in the last two decades; very rare; $3700.00 (€3404.00)
 


Judaea, Achaemenid Persian Yehud Province, c. 375 - 333 B.C.

|Persian| |Rule|, |Judaea,| |Achaemenid| |Persian| |Yehud| |Province,| |c.| |375| |-| |333| |B.C.||half| |gerah|
Yehud, or Yehud Medinata (Aramaic for Province of Judah), was a province of the Persian Achaemenid Empire which corresponded to the previous Babylonian province of Yehud, which was formed after the fall of the kingdom of Judah to the Neo-Babylonian Empire in 597 B.C. The territory, which was ruled by mostly Jewish governors, was considerably smaller and held a far smaller population than the kingdom of Judah before the Babylonian conquest. Yehud existed until the area was incorporated into the empires of Alexander the Great and his successors.
JD111394. Silver half gerah, Hendin 6059a (RR); Meshorer TJC pl. 2, 15; Sofaer p. 241, 10; HGC 10 442 (R1), VF, tight flan, obv. off center, weight 0.270 g, maximum diameter 7.3 mm, die axis 0o, Jerusalem mint, c. 375 - 333 B.C.; obverse lily; reverse falcon facing, flying upward, wings spread, head right, long wings, Aramaic (YHD) upward on right (off flan); rare; $1600.00 (€1472.00)
 


Judaea, Valerius Gratus, Roman Prefect Under Tiberius, 15 - 26 A.D., Cohors II Italica Civium Romanorum Countermark

|Valerius| |Gratus|, |Judaea,| |Valerius| |Gratus,| |Roman| |Prefect| |Under| |Tiberius,| |15| |-| |26| |A.D.,| |Cohors| |II| |Italica| |Civium| |Romanorum| |Countermark||prutah|
Now there was a certain man at Caesarea named Cornelius, a centurion of what was called the Italian cohort...(Acts 10:1).

Spijkermann was the first to publish a countermarked prutah, also a Valerius Gratus coin, in 1963. Lönnqvist published the first detailed study, "New Vistas on the Countermarked Coins of the Roman Prefects of Judaea" in INJ 12. Kogon published an update, "Countermarks on Small Judean Coins" in INR 7, identifying 47 known specimens of countermarked prutah of all types. Both papers are available online. Lönnqvist interpreted CΠ in the countermark as an abbreviation for the Greek word σπειρα, referring to a Roman legionary tactical unit, a cohors. The use of CΠ referring to a cohors is also known from an inscription. He suggested that the countermarks were applied in 36 - 37 A.D. in Jerusalem to mark the coins as pay for the soldiers of the cohors II Italica civium Romanorum.
JD111613. Bronze prutah, Hendin 6369a (same c/m); RPC I 4966.8-11 (same); Meshorer TJC 330 (same); countermark: Kogon 3b, Howgego GIC 386, coin: Fair, countermark: VF, weight 2.195 g, maximum diameter 17.7 mm, die axis 0o, Jerusalem mint, 24 - 25 A.D., c/m: 36 - 37/41 A.D.; obverse TIB / KAI/CAP (Greek: Tiberius Caesar) in three lines within wreath tied at base with an X; reverse palm branch curving right, flanked by IOY-ΛIA (Greek: Julia = Tiberius' mother Livia) above L - IA (year 11 of Tiberius) in two lines across field; countermark: palm frond flanked by C-Π within 8mm circular punch; from the collection of a Texas clergyman, ex J. P. Fontanille Collection (2016); rare countermark; $1600.00 (€1472.00)
 


Judean Kingdom, Alexander Jannaeus (Yehonatan), 103 - 76 B.C.

|Alexander| |Jannaeus|, |Judean| |Kingdom,| |Alexander| |Jannaeus| |(Yehonatan),| |103| |-| |76| |B.C.||lepton|
Unpopular, Jannaeus was pelted with citrons on Sukkot. Enraged, he killed some 6,000 citizens. A revolt erupted and rebels called on the Seleucid King Demetrius III for aid. Demetrius forced him into the mountains but then withdrew. Back in power, Jannaeus crucified 800 rebels forcing them to watch the slaughter of their wives and children from their crosses.
JD98781. Bronze lepton, Hendin 6183 (RR); BMC Palestine p. 199, 9; Meshorer TJC O; Sofaer 220; Meshorer AJC B; HGC 10 643; SNG ANS -, F, earthen deposits, remnant of a pre-strike casting sprue, weight 1.293 g, maximum diameter 13.7 mm, die axis 0o, Jerusalem mint, 103 - 76 B.C.; obverse Paleo-Hebrew legend counterclockwise from upper left: (Yehonatan the King), palm branch upright; reverse lily; from an Israeli collection, first specimen of this type handled by FORVM; very rare; $1250.00 (€1150.00)
 


Judaea, Bar Kochba Revolt, 132 - 135 A.D.

|Bar| |Kochba|, |Judaea,| |Bar| |Kochba| |Revolt,| |132| |-| |135| |A.D.||AE| |25|
The Bar Kokhba revolt, led by Simon bar Kokhba, was the last of the major Jewish–Roman wars. The Roman army suffered heavy losses. It took six full legions, auxiliaries, and elements from as many as six more legions three years to crush the revolt. The Romans annihilated much of the Judean population. In 134, the they captured Jerusalem and Simon bar Kokhba was killed in 135. Legio VI Ferrata rebuilt the legionary fortress in Jerusalem and constructed a Roman temple at Golgotha. An altar to Jupiter was erected on the site of the Temple. The Jewish diaspora began as Hadrian barred Jews from Jerusalem and had survivors of the massacre dispersed across the Roman Empire. Many were sold into slavery. The Jewish people remained scattered without a homeland for close to two millennia.
JD99310. Bronze AE 25, Mildenberg 53 (O3/R18); cf. BMC Palestine p. 308, 48; Sofaer 70; Meshorer TJC p. 250, 260; Hendin 6436, VF, well centered, green patina, highlighting earthen deposits, small edge split, weight 9.563 g, maximum diameter 25.4 mm, die axis 180o, year 2, 133 - 134 A.D.; obverse Paleo-Hebrew inscription: "S-M/A" (abbreviating Simon), seven branched palm tree with two bunches of dates; reverse Paleo-Hebrew inscription: "Year 2 of the freedom of Israel", vine leaf on tendril; from a private collector in New Jersey; $800.00 (€736.00)
 


Judaea, Bar Kochba Revolt, 132 - 135 A.D.

|Bar| |Kochba|, |Judaea,| |Bar| |Kochba| |Revolt,| |132| |-| |135| |A.D.||AE| |27|
After the defeat of Bar Kochba rebellion, Judea would not be a center of Jewish religious, cultural, or political life again until the modern era, although Jews continued to sporadically populate it and important religious developments still took place there. Galilee became an important center of Rabbinic Judaism, where the Jerusalem Talmud was compiled in the 4th-5th centuries. In the aftermath of the defeat, the maintenance of Jewish settlement in Palestine became a major concern of the rabbinate. The Sages endeavored to halt Jewish dispersal, and even banned emigration from Palestine, branding those who settled outside its borders as idolaters.
JD99312. Bronze AE 27, Mildenberg 132 (O10/R96); cf. Meshorer TJC 292a; BMC Palestine p. 312, 80; SNG ANS 572; Hendin 6464, gVF, green patina, earthen deposits, slightly off center, weight 8.558 g, maximum diameter 26.7 mm, die axis 180o, year 3, 134 - 135 A.D.; obverse paleo-Hebrew inscription: "Shimon", seven branched palm tree with two bunches of dates; reverse paleo-Hebrew inscription: "for the freedom of Jerusalem", five-lobed vine-leaf with strongly accentuated ribs, hanging from curved branch, short tendril right; from a private collector in New Jersey; $800.00 (€736.00)
 


Phoenician, Bronze Trapezoid Cube Weight (Ayin - 21.595g), c. 7th - 4th Century B.C.

|Weights| |&| |Scales|, |Phoenician,| |Bronze| |Trapezoid| |Cube| |Weight| |(Ayin| |-| |21.595g),| |c.| |7th| |-| |4th| |Century| |B.C.|
This weight is the usual shape for the type, an inverted truncated pyramid - a cube with the bottom slightly smaller than the top. The type dates from perhaps as early as the the 9th century B.C. to the end of the Persian period. They were undoubtedly used to weigh silver bullion for transactions. Kletter lists nine weights with circle marks, ranging from 2.55g to 80.67g. Some, like ours, were incised with straight lines or punches. Most were found at Akko.
AS111486. Phoenician, bronze trapezoid cube weight; cf. Hendin Weights 245 (21.63), Kletter 2000 25 (21.17g), Hecht A 47 (20.03g), Choice, 21.595g (3 shekels?), 14.3x16.6x12.9mm, c. 7th - 4th Century B.C.; inverted truncated pyramid (a cube with the bottom slightly smaller than the top), incised circle (Phoenician ayin) on top created with a 8 short straight line cuts, ex Shick Coins (Max Shick, Israel, 2012); $800.00 (€736.00)
 




  



CLICK HERE TO SEE MORE FROM THIS CATEGORY - FORVM's PRIOR SALES


REFERENCES

Archaeological Center. Auction No. 34: The Arnold Spaer Collection of Ancient Jewish Coins. Catalog of public auction Tel-Aviv, 5 October 2004.
Ariel, D. & J. Fontanille. The Coins of Herod: A Modern Analysis and Die Classification. (Leiden, 2012).
Baramki, D. The Coin Collection of the American University of Beirut Museum. (Beirut, 1974).
Brett, A. "Mint of Ascalon under the Seleucids" in ANSMN IV. (New York, 1950). Burnett, A., M. Amandry, et al. Roman Provincial Coinage. (1992 - ).
Fontanille, J. Menorah Coin Project Website. http://menorahcoinproject.org.
Fontanille, J. & S. Gosline. The Coins of Pontius Pilate. (PA, 2001).
Gitler, H. & O. Tal. The Coinage of Philistia of the Fifth and Fourth Centuries BC: A Study of the Earliest Coins of Palestine. (Milan & New York, 2006).
Gitler, H., O. Tal, & P. van Alfen. "Silver Dome-shaped Coins from Persian-period Southern Palestine" in INR 2 (2007), pp. 47 - 62, pls. 5-12.
Hamburger, H. "Minute coins from Caesarea" in ATIQOT - Journal of The Israel Dept. of Antiquities, Volume I. (Jerusalem, 1955).
Harl, K. "The Coinage of Neapolis in Samaria" in ANSMN 29 (1984), pp. 61–97, pl. 6-15.
Hendin, D. Guide to Biblical Coins, 6th Edition. (Amphora, 2021).
Heritage Auctions. The Shoshana Collection of Ancient Judaean Coins. The history of the Jewish people as told through coins. Catalog of public auction, 8 March 2012. New York. 2012.
Heritage Auctions. The Shoshana Collection of Ancient Judaean Coins. Coins, Culture and Conflict in the Ancient Holy Land. Catalog of public auction, 5 September 2012. New York. 2012.
Hill, G. Catalogue of Greek Coins in the British Museum: Palestine. (London, 1914).
Hoover, O. Handbook of Coins of the Southern Levant: Phoenicia, Southern Koile Syria (Including Judaea), and Arabia, Fifth to First Centuries BC. HGC 10. (Lancaster, 2010).
Houghton, A., C. Lorber & O. Hoover. Seleucid Coins: A Comprehensive Catalog. (Lancaster, 2002-2008).
Kadman, L. The Coins of Aelia Capitolina. (Jerusalem, 1956).
Kadman, L. The Coinage of Akko Ptolemais. (Jerusalem, 1961).
Kadman, L. The Coinage of Caesarea Maritima. (Jerusalem, 1957).
Kindler, A. "The Coins of Antipatris" in INJ 11 (1990-91).
Kindler, A. "The Coins of the City of Gaba" in B. Mazar (ed.), Gaba - Archaeological Discoveries in Tel Abu-Shusha/Mishmar Ha-Emek. (Tel-Aviv, 1988), p. 64 - 65.
Kindler, A. The Coins of Tiberias. (Tiberias, 1961).
Meshorer, Y. Ancient Jewish Coinage. (New York, 1982).
Meshorer, Y. A Treasury of Jewish Coins from the Persian Period to Bar Kokhba. (Jerusalem, 2001).
Meshorer, Y. City-Coins of Eretz Israel and the Decapolis in the Roman Period. (Jerusalem, 1985).
Meshorer, Y. "One Hundred Ninety Years of Tyrian Shekels" in Studies Mildenberg.
Meshorer, Y. Jewish Coins of the Second Temple Period. (Tel-Aviv, 1967).
Meshorer, Y. The Coins of Aelia Capitolina. (Jerusalem, 1989).
Meshorer, Y. "The Coins of Caesarea Paneas" in INJ 8 (1984-5).
Meshorer, Y. "The Coins of Dora" in INJ 9 (1986).
Meshorer, Y. "Monnaies de Raphia" in RN 1976.
Meshorer, Y. and S. Qedar. The Coinage of Samaria in the 4th Century BCE. (Jerusalem, 1991).
Meshorer, Y. and S. Qedar. Samarian Coinage. (Jerusalem, 1999).
Mildenberg, L. The Coinage of the Bar Kokhba War. Typos VI. (Aarau, 1984).
Mildenberg, L. "Yehud: A Preliminary Study of the Provincial Coinage of Judaea" in Essays Thompson. (Wetteren, 1979).
Prieur, M. & K. Prieur. The Syro-Phoenician Tetradrachms and their fractions from 57 BC to AD 258. (Lancaster, PA, 2000).
Rosenberger, M. The Rosenberger Israel Collection Vol. I: City-Coins of Palestine: Aelia Kapitolina, Akko, Anthedon Antipatirs and Ascalon. (Jerusalem, 1972).
Rosenberger, M. The Rosenberger Israel Collection Vol. II: City-Coins of Palestine: Caesarea, Diospolis, Dora, Eleutheropolis, Gaba, Gaza and Joppa. (Jerusalem, 1975).
Rosenberger, M. The Rosenberger Israel Collection Vol. III: City-Coins of Palestine: Hipos-Sussita, Neapolis, Nicopolis, Nysa-Scytopolis, Caesarea-Panias, Pelusium, Raphia, Sabaste, Sepphoris-Diocaesarea, Tiberias. (Jerusalem, 1977).
Rosenberger, M. The Rosenberger Israel Collection Vol. IV: The Coinage of Eastern Palestine, and legionary countermarks, Bar-Kochba overstruck. (Jerusalem, 1978).
RPC Online - http://rpc.ashmus.ox.ac.uk/coins/
Samuels, C., P. Rynearson & Y. Meshorer. The Numismatic Legacy of the Jews as depicted by a distinguished American Collection. (New York, 2000).
Sear, D. Greek Coins and Their Values, Volume 2, Asia and Africa. (London, 1979).
Sear, D. Greek Imperial Coins and Their Values. (London, 1982).
Spijkerman, A. The Coins of the Decapolis and Provincia Arabia. (Jerusalem, 1978).
Superior Galleries & Leu Numismatics. The Abraham Bromberg Collection of Jewish Coins. 2 parts. Catalogs of public auctions, 5 December 1991 and 10 December 1992. New York.
Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum, Denmark, The Royal Collection of Coins and Medals, Danish National Museum, Volume 7: Cyprus to India. (West Milford, NJ, 1982).
Sylloge Nummorum Graecorum, USA, The Collection of the American Numismatic Society, Part 6: Palestine - South Arabia. (New York, 1981).
van Alfen, P. "A New Athenian "Owl" and Bullion Hoard from the Near East" in AJN 16-17. (2004-2005).
Yashin, C. From Ascalon to Raphia: City Coins of the Southern Palestinian Coast. (Jerusalem, 2007).

Catalog current as of Tuesday, June 6, 2023.
Page created in 1.641 seconds.
All coins are guaranteed for eternity