Obverse: Anchor Surrounded by Greek Incription
Reading, "Herod"
Reverse: Twin Cornucopias
Herod Archelaus was the son of King Herod the
Great and his wife Malthace. Upon Herod’s death
in 4 B.C., his kingdom was divided amongst his
sons Archelaus, Herod Antipas, and Philip with
Archelaus receiving the largest portion to govern
under the title ethnarch, or “national leader.”
However, immediately after his accession, things
went horribly wrong. Just before his death,
Herod the Great sentenced two popular teachers,
Judas and Mathias (as well as their students), to
be burned alive for inciting their pupils to
remove the golden eagle from the entrance to
the Temple. An angry mob greeted the new
leader, Archelaus, demanding justice for these
martyrs. In order to quell this protest, Archelaus
had over three thousand Jews murdered. Once
calm was seemingly restored, Archelaus
ventured off to Rome to have himself crowned by
Augustus. During his absence, a new series of
new riots were initiated by a series of messianic
Jewish leaders, among them Athronges. Herod’s
soldiers were unable to deal with the rebellion
and reinforcements were called in from Roman-
governed Syria. In the end, the rioting ceased
after much more bloodshed. Herod Archelaus
was such a bad leader that the citizens of
Samaria and Judea jointly appealed to Rome to
appoint a new leader. There request was
granted and Archelaus was banished to Gaul,
ending another bloody chapter in the history of
ancient Israel.
How many hands have touched a coin in your
pocket or 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 might have touched the coin before us, or
where the coin will venture to after it leaves our
hands. More than money, coins are a symbol of
the state that struck them, of a specific time and
location, whether contemporary currencies or
artifacts of a long forgotten empire. This
stunning hand-struck coin reveals an expertise
of craftsmanship and intricate sculptural detail
that is often lacking in contemporary machine-
made currencies. This ancient coin is a reminder
of the troubled times during the reign of Herod
Archelaus, passed from the hands of civilization
to civilization, from generation to generation that
still appears as vibrant today as the day it was
struck.
- (C.864)
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