Classical Numismatic Group, LLC
Keystone Auction 9 18 Jan 2023
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JUDAEA. 4th century BCE. AR Half Gerah (7mm, 0.30 g, 10h). Jerusalem mint. Lily / Falcon with wings spread, head right; YHD (in Phoenician) to right. Hendin 6059a. Minor deposits. VF. Well centered and struck. Rare.
From the David Hendin Collection, sold for the benefit of the American Numismatic Society.
Symbolically and historically, this is one of the most important coins that was ever struck in Judaea. It is one of the earliest Jewish coins, and is the model for the modern Israeli shekel. It depicts the lily, known as shoshan in Hebrew, the ancient symbol of rebirth and of the city of Jerusalem. As Rabbi Emil Hirsch describes, "As it withers in the sunlight, but blooms beneath the dew, so Israel withers away except God becomes as dew for her (Hos. xiv. 5), and she is renowned among the nations as the lily among the flowers."
From the David Hendin Collection, sold for the benefit of the American Numismatic Society.
Symbolically and historically, this is one of the most important coins that was ever struck in Judaea. It is one of the earliest Jewish coins, and is the model for the modern Israeli shekel. It depicts the lily, known as shoshan in Hebrew, the ancient symbol of rebirth and of the city of Jerusalem. As Rabbi Emil Hirsch describes, "As it withers in the sunlight, but blooms beneath the dew, so Israel withers away except God becomes as dew for her (Hos. xiv. 5), and she is renowned among the nations as the lily among the flowers."