Archaeologists Stunned After Discovering 2,100-Year-Old Hoard of 160 Jewish Coins Buried Under a Building
Archaeologists have uncovered a collection of 160 coins from Israel featuring Jewish royalty. The hoard was located in Jordan Valley and dated back to 2,100 years, stated Live Science. The coins have been noted to have eight-pointed stars on them, featuring both Aramaic and Greek inscriptions. These inscriptions mention Alexander Jannaeus, an ancient high priest and past king of the Hasmoneans dynasty, a clan of Jewish kings, who were ruling the area when the coins were made.
The coins were located near a collapsed wall inside the food preparation area of a particular building at the Rujm es-Sia site. Researchers are yet to figure out the reason behind the coins being buried in this particular location. "The question of deposition intent is very hard to answer in archaeology," Shay Bar, an archaeologist at the University of Haifa, who is leading the team exploring the area said. Certain speculations made by the researchers include, the coin being kept there for safekeeping during troubled times or the spot acting as a cash desk for people selling food.
Another theory by experts is related to a practice that was not popular during Jannaeus' reign. In this custom, the coins were placed by the wall as an offering or foundation deposit. Researchers claim that something like this could have happened in this case. According to experts, coins with such patterns were minted from 80 to 79 B.C. Researchers state that though the coins themselves are not uncommon, what makes them rare is, before this collection they had never been found in hoards.
The star on the coin was surrounded by 'King Alexander Year 25' inscription in Aramaic, according to The Times of Israel. On the reverse side, there is an anchor surrounded by a Greek inscription which translates to '[coin] of King Alexander.'
The collection is the largest of its kind to be found in Israel, according to Fox News. Because very few coins from Jannaeus's reign have been discovered by experts, the cache has become extremely valuable for researchers. Researchers claim that the building functioned as a 'road station' for people in the past going to Alexandrion, an ancient fortress. "The researchers are convinced that the site of the excavations in the Jordan Valley… is a road station that has not been known until now, on the main road that leads to the fortress of Sartaba (Alexandrion), which was built by King Yanai," the University of Haifa stated.
Researchers have been ecstatic to find something so meaningful during a stressful time for their country. "The students and the volunteer excavators in the excavation were very excited to find such a Hasmonean cache and more during Hanukkah, and this added special significance to them… during the difficult days that pass on our people at the present time," Bar said.
Researchers have also located a mikveh, a structure for a Jewish ritual bath, and a pool at the site, The Times of Israel stated. The identification of the site was important for experts. "We discovered a Hasmonean site, on the ascent to Sarbata… It’s very Jewish. It’s important because this site was active for a limited period. The moment we have these coins, dating to the time of Alexander Jannaeus, with all the other finds there… it gives us a very exact time capsule, which doesn’t always happen in archaeology," Bar said. Besides the collection of 160 coins, researchers also found other Hasmonean period coins from the site. This brought the total number of coins unearthed from the 'road station' to 200. Now the coins will go for further analysis where they will be cleaned, photographed, cataloged, and examined.