עתיקות: מטבעות עתיקים

The Great Revolt, the first major rebellion of the Jewish against the Roman rule and ended with the destruction of Jerusalem and the Second Temple in 70 AD. Although defeated, the Jewish people were not giving up hope that Jerusalem and the Temple will be rebuilt. Also, the tensions between the Jewish people and the Roman conquerors continued. Therefore, when the Roman Emperor Hadrian decided to build a new city over the ruins of Jerusalem, another revolt erupted. The Emperor’s idea was to build Aelia Capitolina, a Roman colony with a temple dedicated to Jupiter in the same place where the Jewish temple stood. Similar to the Maccabean Revolt, which erupted after Seleucid King Antioch IV Epiphanes ordered the erection of an altar dedicated to Zeus inside the Temple; another desecration of the Temple Mount resulted in another strong revolt. Leader of the rebels was Simon Bar Kokhba, whose nickname Kokhba (“Son of the Star”) was a reference to a Biblical verse announcing redemption: “There shall step forth a star out of Jacob” (Numbers 24:17).  The rebels tried to liberate all of Judea and even issued their coins. In 136, after several years of heavy losses on both sides, the uprising was crushed and almost all Jewish towns and villages were razed to the ground. Today, Bar Kokhba’s coin testify about this turbulent and tragic period of Jewish history.  

In the ancient world, temple treasuries were similar to national banks today. Coins with national inscriptions were a sign of a state’s sovereignty. Since there was no treasury, in order to mint their coins, rebels over-struck all foreign coins circulating in Judea with Jewish symbols. However, the revolt and coinage were much more than the sign of sovereignty in today’s terms. Jewish people had messianic expectations and considered Bar Kokhba as a messiah. The coins were showing the faith of the rebels that God will deliver his people and rebuild Jerusalem. And that was the message of the rebels not only for their contemporaries but also for future generations. 

On all of the coins from Bar Kokhba’s Revolt, there is his name „Simon“ except for a few coins from the first year when the name of Eleazar the Priest was inscribed. These coins abound in Jewish religious symbols such as Holy of Holies, the Ark, tablets of Ten Commandments. Even the agricultural symbols are associated with Succoth, Jewish harvest festival. This particular coin is from the third year of the revolt and has inscribed ’Simon’ on one side within a wreath of branches wrapped around eight almonds. On the other side, „For the freedom of Jerusalem“ is inscribed around an upright palm branch. During the first two years of the revolt, inscriptions on the coins were year 1, or year two of the redemption of Jerusalem (or Israel). However, during the third year, when rebels had to retreat to mountains, the inscription had changed but still conveying the message of freedom and liberation. 

What makes this coin an exceptional find is mentioning Jerusalem in  the inscription struck over Emperor Trajan Roman coin emphasizing its both patriotic and religious significance. Also, it should be mentioned that the inscription is written in Paleo-Hebrew although the Jewish people used Aramaic as the spoken language at the time. During Babylonian captivity, the Jewish people gradually abandoned their language and accepted Aramaic in everyday’s communication, while Paleo-Hebrew remained as the language of religious writings and educated individuals. However, since the 19th century, Hebrew language was revived as literary language together with revival of the Jewish state. Therefore, the inscription on Bar Kokhba’s coin reveals the same dream of revival that waited for centuries to become true. 

In 63 B.C.E., the Roman general Pompey the Great conquered Jerusalem and Judaea lost its independence. First, it was a vassal state but since the beginning of the first century A.D., it was turned into a Roman province. Judaism was recognized as a legal religion in the Roman Empire but over time the Roman authorities became increasingly intolerant while incompetent Roman governors devastated the province with taxes. At any hint of rebellion, Roman provincial governors responded with executions and ill-treatment of the population. 

When the Lord was crucified, written on top of the cross was: „Jesus the Nazarene, King of the Judeans“. in Latin (Iesus Nazarenus, Rex Judaeorum or IUDAEA  – I.N.R.I.). The Romans could not tell the difference between Judaism and emerging Christianity but they were bothered by the persistent refusal of both Christians and Jews to recognize the Roman emperor as a god.

The Jewish-Roman relations especially deteriorated during the reign of the Roman Emperor Nero (54-68). As a response to the riots in Caesarea in 66 A.D., Roman procurator Gessius Florus plundered the Temple in Jerusalem trying to turn it into a temple of the Roman Emperor. This sacrelige act provoked a massive rebellion in Jerusalem which led to the first Jewish-Roman War (66-73 A.D.). In the beginning, the Jewish rebels were very successful even crushing the whole Syrian legion. Therefore, Nero decided to send against the rebels Vespasian, an experienced Roman general, and his son Titus as second-in-chief. By 67 A.D. Vespasian and Titus conquered almost the whole Judea. Meanwhile, a Civil War erupted in Rome and the army elected Vespasian as the new emperor. Therefore, Vespasian left to Rome, while his son Titus began the siege of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. The siege lasted four months and ended with devastating consequences. The Temple in Jerusalem was burned and destructed on The 9th Of AV Of the Jewish Calendar ,and according to the historian of that period Josephus, 1.1 million people were killed. 

Why Judaea Capta coins were issued?

After the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem, the symbol, spirit, heart and soul of the Jewish religion and nation, new Emperor Vespasian started issuing the coins to commemorate his victory. Since Vespasian was the founder of the Flavian Dynasty, the glorification of his victory over Judaea was a sort of political propaganda. Moreover, coins representing the Roman victory over Judaea were struck not only over the reign of Vespasian but also during the reign of his sons, Titus and Domitian. Over 25 years Judaea Capta coins were issued by mints in Rome but also in Judaea and all over the Roman Empire. The coins were made of gold, silver, and bronze.  

The Inscriptions on Judaea Capta coins:

This coin is a silver denarius issued 69/70 AD and represents one of the earliest versions of Judaea Capta coins. On the front side of the coin, there is Vespasian’s laureate head and the inscription to denounce his regnal name: „IMP CAESAR VESPASIANVS AVG“ – Emperor Caesar Vespasianus Augustus. The backside of the coin depicts a Jewess woman's head resting on hand, seated on the ground and mourning next to the Roman tropaion – a symbol of victory.  The woman figure is a personification of Jerusalem or Judaea and there is the inscription „JUDAEA“ underneath. Judaea Capta coins had several variants. Sometimes, Judaea was depicted as a male figure, or woman seating under a palm tree or standing with bounded hands. Instead of tropaion, the Roman victory was also presented as a Roman soldier, Roman Emperor, or Goddess Victory. These coins often had the inscription „JUDAEA CAPTA“ – Judaea captured or „JUDAEA DEVICTA“ – Judaea defeated (conquered). This particular coin is very valuable as one of the earliest versions of Judaea Capta coins. It testifies how important and prestigious this victory was to the Roman public and the Flavian Dynasty.