Home Scientific Research Ancient coin with intriguing inscription discovered in Jerusalem

Ancient coin with intriguing inscription discovered in Jerusalem

Ancient coin with intriguing inscription discovered in Jerusalem
Photo: Screenshot from video Unique coin found in Jerusalem

The find is one of the rarest treasures of the second century AD, found in Israel.

In Jerusalem, at the foot of the Temple Mount, archaeologists have discovered a rare bronze coin. 

Archaeologists date this discovery to 132 AD (almost 1900 years ago), when there was an uprising of the Jews of Roman Judea against the Roman Empire under the leadership of Simon Bar Kokhba. 

On one side of the ancient coin, there is an image of a bunch of grapes and the inscription: The Second Year of Israel’s Freedom. On the reverse side there is a palm tree and an inscription: Jerusalem. 

According to archaeologists at the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA), this is truly an exceptional discovery. Of the 22,000 coins found in Jerusalem, only four were dated by the conflict. However, no coins with the name of the city have ever been found in Jerusalem. 

According to IAA archaeologists, Moran Hagbi and Dr. Joe Uziel, the coins were probably brought to Jerusalem by 10th Legion Roman legionnaires, who were involved in suppressing the revolt. 

“One of the questions that we ask ourselves is how this coin found its way to Jerusalem because we know today that the rebels did not conquer Jerusalem. The camp of the 10th Legion was located within the Old City of Jerusalem and some say it was located south of the Temple Mount,” said Hagbi.

Scholars have suggested that the Roman legionaries collected Jewish coins as souvenirs.

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