Israel Numismatic Research
Published by the Israel Numismatic Society
Volume 9 2014
Contents
5 Erik Waaler: A Sixth-Century Coin from Kos found at Ketef Hinnom, Jerusalem
15 Haim Gitler and Oren Tal: More Than Meets The Eye: Athenian Owls and the Chronology of Southern Palestinian Coinages of the Persian Period
29 Danny Syon: A Hoard of Tyrian Silver from Ḥorbat ‘Aqrav, Upper Galilee
39 Eric A. Carlen: A Review of the Shechem Hoard
61 Gérald Finkielsztejn: The Weight Standards of the Hellenistic Levant, Part One: The Evidence of the Syrian Scale Weights
95 David M. Jacobson: Herod the Great’s Royal Monogram
103 Cecilia Meir: Tyrian Sheqels from the ‘Isfiya Hoard, Part Five: Half Sheqels with Unclear Dates, Crude-Style Half Sheqels and Augustan Imperial Denars
109 Yoav Farhi and Alexander Melamed: Two Coin Hoards from Underground Complexes at Nesher-Ramla Quarry
133 Yinon Shivtiel and Nili Ahipaz: Coins from Cliff Shelters and Hiding Complexes in Galilee and their Historical and Archaeological Significance
149 Donald T. Ariel, Yuval Baruch and Irina Zilberbod: “Out of the North the Evil Shall Break Forth”: Numismatic Evidence for the Besiegers in Jerusalem during the First Jewish Revolt?
163 Edward L. Mason and Paolo Visonà: New Evidence for the 1889 ‘Hebron’ Hoard of Bar Kokhba Silver
173 Kate Raphael and Gabriela Bijovsky: The Coin Hoard from Caesarea Maritima and the 363 CE Earthquake
193 Gabriela Bijovsky, Deborah Sandhaus and Ianir Milevski: A Byzantine Hoard of Gold Coins from Ashqelon, Barnea B–C Neighborhood
213 Lionel Holland: A Group of Ottoman Dirhem Weights
Abstracts
A Sixth-Century Coin from Kos found at Ketef Hinnom, Jerusalem
Erik Waaler
A silver coin from Kos was found in a burial cave at Ketef Hinnom in use between c. 650 and
450 BCE. Depicted are a crab on the obverse and an incuse square on the reverse, indicating
that it might be a trihemiobol minted in the Lydo-Milesian standard. Trade between western
Turkey and the Levant ended abruptly about 603 BCE when the coast of the Levant was
destroyed by the Babylonians. Trade resumed in the Persian period, but mainly with the
Greek mainland. As 603 BCE is too early for the coin, it probably entered the Levant in the
Persian period.
More Than Meets The Eye: Athenian Owls and the Chronology of Southern Palestinian Coinages of the Persian Period
Haim Gitler and Oren Tal
In our INR 7 paper we suggested that with regard to the treatment of eyes on Philistian coins,
the predominant style was the three-quarter profile eye found on Athenian tetradrachms
in c. 420–390 BCE. In this follow-up paper we have re-examined 53 Athenian issues
found in licensed archeological excavations in Palestine. The percentages of coins per
period in terms of similarity of eye treatment between these Athenian finds and the
Philistian and Samarian coinages are significantly similar. Artistically, this indicates that
local craftsmen were strongly influenced by Greek die engraving. Another implication
may be chronological, suggesting a close dating between the circulating Athenian issues
and local coins.
A Hoard of Tyrian Silver from Ḥorbat ‘Aqrav, Upper Galilee
Danny Syon
A hoard discovered in 1970 in Upper Galilee contained silver coins of Antiochus VII and
Demetrius II minted in Tyre, as well as autonomous sheqels of Tyre. The 20 coins described
form less than half of the original hoard and span 28 years. It is suggested that this emergency
hoard was buried around 110 BCE and is connected with the Hasmonean penetration into
Galilee, before its annexation to the Hasmonean state.
A Review of the Shechem Hoard
Eric A. Carlen
This study presents the first full account of the 1960 Shechem hoard, partially published by
Sellers in 1962, and consisting of 35 Ptolemaic tetradrachms. It corrects some attributions and
dates in Seller’s original publication. These corrections date the concealment to 199/8 BCE,
rather than 190 BCE as Sellers proposed, a change that is historically significant. Moreover,
the hoard contains four coins of Ptolemy IV Philopator, only one of which is a variety listed
by Svoronos. These coins provide information on Philopator’s coinage and its economic role
in the region at the time.
The Weight Standards of the Hellenistic Levant, Part One: The Evidence of the Syrian Scale Weights
Gérald Finkielsztejn
This is the first of three planned articles presenting most of the known inscribed lead scale
weights from the Hellenistic Levant. The standards and units on which they were based are
deduced from their weighed masses, from the values that are inscribed on these weights or
according to values on parallel weights from the same or very similar classes. In a fourth
article, the origins of the standards, the relations between them and the evolution of some of
them will be discussed, as well as suggestions for some historical conclusions.
Herod the Great’s Royal Monogram
David M. Jacobson
The significance of the cross or saltire, usually enclosed by a diadem, which features on a few
of Herod’s coins, has represented an ongoing enigma. Examined in the context of Herod’s coin
types, it is argued that this motif represents Herod’s royal monogram. This interpretation can
help to explain the crossed palm branches depicted on a coin of the Roman governor under
Claudius dated to 54 CE.
Tyrian Sheqels from the ‘Isfiya Hoard, Part Five: Half Sheqels with Unclear Dates, Crude-Style Half Sheqels and Augustan Imperial Denars
Cecilia Meir
The current publication presents the last 5 Tyrian half sheqels with unclear legends, the
remain15 half sheqels with ‘crude style’ and 8 Early Roman imperial denars (Augustus).
Two Coin Hoards from Underground Complexes at Nesher-Ramla Quarry
Yoav Farhi and Alexander Melamed
Yoav Farhi and Alexander Melamed
Two coin hoards, excavated in subterranean hiding complexes at the Nesher-Ramla quarry,
are examined. The first is a small hoard of 4 coins from the first century BCE, struck under
Mattathias Antigonus, and the second is a hoard of 65 coins concealed in the first decades of
the second century CE.
Coins from Cliff Shelters and Hiding Complexes in Galilee and their Historical and Archaeological Significance
Yinon Shivtiel and Nili Ahipaz
Seventeen coins were found during a survey to document cliff shelters and hiding complexes,
carried out in eastern Galilee in 2005–2009. The inaccessibility of the cliff shelters is an
indication that the coins arrived there at a time of distress and crisis. These coins are presented
and the historical circumstances under which they reached the cliff shelters and hiding
complexes are proposed.
“Out of the North the Evil Shall Break Forth”: Numismatic Evidence for the Besiegers in Jerusalem during the First Jewish Revolt?
Donald T. Ariel, Yuval Baruch and Irina Zilberbod
Two small coin hoards found north of Jerusalem are likely to have belonged to soldiers
besieging Jerusalem during Titus’ siege of the city in 70 CE.
New Evidence for the 1889 ‘Hebron’ Hoard of Bar Kokhba Silver
Edward L. Mason and Paolo Visonà
A group of Bar Kokhba tetradrachms and denars, and a bronze ring, acquired by Henry
Gillman while U.S. consul in Jerusalem, come from a hoard said to have been found at Hebron
in 1889. The coins are presumed to be the first assemblage of Bar Kokhba currency known
to modern scholars. Some of these specimens were subsequently divided between the Kelsey
Museum of Archaeology in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and the Detroit Institute of Arts. The hoard
included a large number of coins struck in the final stage of the rebellion and was hidden
before some of the latest issues were dispersed.
The Coin Hoard from Caesarea Maritima and the 363 CE Earthquake
Kate Raphael and Gabriela Bijovsky
The earthquake of 363 CE is mentioned in several contemporary sources; it struck 22 towns
and the scale of damage varied considerably from town to town. Caesarea Maritima appears
on the list of sites that were hit; however the only archaeological evidence for the earthquake is
a large hoard of 3,700 copper coins found in the excavations of the synagogue. The latest coins
recovered date to 361 CE and suggest the synagogue was destroyed by the 363 CE earthquake.
This paper presents a thorough numismatic analysis and catalogue of the hoard and examines
the active geological faults in the region of Caesarea.
A Byzantine Hoard of Gold Coins from Ashqelon, Barnea B–C Neighborhood
Gabriela Bijovsky, Deborah Sandhaus and Ianir Milevski
A hoard of seven gold coins was discovered during excavations at the Barnea B–
C neighborhood
in Ashqelon. The coins in the hoard combine two well-defined chronological groups: The
earlier comprises three fourth-century CE solidi and the later, four fractions of the solidus
dated to the first half of the sixth century. This typological composition is known from other,
similar assemblages in Palestine and Egypt. This article focuses on the typological study of
the hoard within a broader framework which describes the excavation and the archaeological
context where the hoard was found.
A Group of Ottoman Dirhem Weights
Lionel Holland
A group of seven Ottoman dirhem weights of two types is described, and discussed against a
general background of Ottoman historical metrology.