Obverse: Chalice with pearl rim, legend reading
"For The Redemption of Zion"
Reverse: Lulav flanked by Etrog on either side,
legend reading Year Four
In 66 A.D., while Nero was Emperor of Rome, the last
Roman Procurator Florian was accused of stealing from the
Temple. To mock him, protestors took up a collection of
coins for the relief of the "poverty-stricken" Procurator.
Showing a rather poor sense of humor, Florian sent troops
to put down the disorder. This led to a full-scale
rebellion. The Roman troops eventually surrendered, but
were killed anyway. By now, the rebellion had grown to a
full-scale war. The Jews in Jerusalem started minting their
own coins, with victory slogans, such as this Shekel. But
there was also fighting among the Jews, as the more
extreme elements took control from (and eliminated) the
moderate leaders, under whom the rebellion had started.
Nero sent his distinguished general, Vespasian, to stamp
out the Jewish rebellion. But political troubles at home led
Nero to commit suicide, and Vespasian headed back to
Rome to claim the Emperorship for himself, leaving his
son Titus in charge of the Judaean campaign. Vespasian
was ultimately successful in his quest for the throne, and
as Titus was also ultimately successful in crushing the
Judaean rebellion. As a finishing touch, the Temple where
the last of the Jewish rebels in Jerusalem had holed up was
burned to the ground in 70 B.C.
How many hands have touched a coin in your pocket or
your purse? What eras and lands have the coin traversed
on its journey into our possession? As we reach into our
pockets to pull out some change, we rarely hesitate to
think of who touched the coin before us, or where the
coin will venture to after us. More than money, coins are a
symbol of the state that struck them, of a specific time
and place, whether contemporary currencies or artifacts of
a long forgotten empire. This stunning hand-struck coin
reveals an expertise of craftsmanship and intricate
sculptural details that are often lacking in contemporary
machine-made currencies. Depicted on the reverse, the
pomegranate was one of the seven celebrated products of
Palestine and among the fruits that brought to the temple
as offerings of the first-fruits. Two hundred
pomegranates decorated each of the two columns in the
temple and were an integral part of the sacred vestment of
the High Priest, as bells and pomegranates were
suspended from his mantle. The struggle of the Jewish
people to rule their homeland, as represented by this coin,
has finally come to an end in modern times. This coin
reconnects us with the past, with those who fought and
struggled for their freedom against an oppressive empire
almost two thousand year ago.
