Ira and Larry Goldberg Auctioneers
Auction 96 14-15 February 2017
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Judaea, Hasmonean Kingdom. Mattathias Antigonos (Mattatayah). Æ 8 Prutot (13.64 g), 40-37 BCE. Jerusalem. 'Mattatayah the High Priest and Council of the Jews' (Paleo-Hebrew), double cornucopiae. Reverse: [B]ACIΛEΩC ANTIΓONOY, ivy wreath tied with ribbons. TJC 36; Hendin 1162. Rare. Well struck and unusually well centered. Pleasing green patina. One of the finest examples we have seen. Extremely Fine. Estimate Value $1,000 - UP
The 8-prutah of Mattathias II Antigonus takes it typological cues from the coinages of earlier Hasmonaean rulers as a means of presenting him as a legitimate ruler. The cornucopiae and wreath types look back to the heady days of John Hyrcanus I (134-104 BCE) and the foundation of the fully autonomous Hasmonaean Jewish state while the Paleo-Hebrew legend identifying him as High Priest and the Greek legend naming him as king follow the pattern established by Alexander Jannaeus (103-76 BCE).
The 8-prutah of Mattathias II Antigonus takes it typological cues from the coinages of earlier Hasmonaean rulers as a means of presenting him as a legitimate ruler. The cornucopiae and wreath types look back to the heady days of John Hyrcanus I (134-104 BCE) and the foundation of the fully autonomous Hasmonaean Jewish state while the Paleo-Hebrew legend identifying him as High Priest and the Greek legend naming him as king follow the pattern established by Alexander Jannaeus (103-76 BCE).