Archæology and the Bible

by George A. Barton

After the Persian period the coinage of all the nations to whom the Jews became subject circulated in turn in Palestine. Foreign coins also found their way into the country. Many of these ultimately were lost and buried in the soil, so that many, many coins have been brought to light by archæological research. We have space here to mention only those that are of the greatest interest to students of the Bible.

Palestine passed under the sway of Alexander the Great in 332 B. C., and after his death in 323 it was attached to the territory of Ptolemy Lagi of Egypt and his successors. In 199 B. C. Antiochus III wrested it from the Ptolemies and the Jews passed under the sway of the Syrians. During this time the coins of these rulers circulated in the country and are still frequently dug up there, although they are not mentioned in the Bible. Samples of these coins are shown in Figs. [190], [195]. Not until the Jews had gained their independence under Simon the Maccabee, in the year 143 B. C., did they issue any coinage of their own. Indeed, it now seems clear that no coins were issued by Simon until after the year 139-138 B. C., when the Syrian king by an especial grant accorded him that liberty. The coins then issued appear to have been made of bronze only.[193] A silver coinage formerly attributed to Simon the Maccabee is now regarded as belonging to the time of the Jewish revolt of 66-70 A. D.

(3) Maccabæan Coins.—The coins of Simon consist of bronze half-shekels and quarter-shekels all dated in the year four. Antiochus VII of Syria apparently prevented the issue of others during the reign of Simon. His coins bear on their face the picture of a citron between two bundles of twigs. Around the border runs the inscription in old Hebrew characters, “year four; one-half.” On the other side is a palm-tree with two bunches of fruit between two baskets filled with fruits, and around the border runs the inscription, “belonging to the redemption of Zion;” (see [Fig. 192]). The weights of these coins vary from 232.6 to 237 grains. The lighter ones are considerably worn.

The quarter-shekels have on one side two bundles of twigs, around which run the words, “year four; one-fourth.” On the other side is pictured a citron with the stalk upward, around which runs the inscription, “belonging to the redemption of Zion.” The weights of the known coins of this denomination vary from 113.7 to 192.3 grains. The form of the letters on these coins shows that they are older than other Jewish coins.

(4) Asmonæan Coins.—There are many coins from the reign of John Hyrcanus, the son and successor of Simon, but they are all of copper; (see [Fig. 193]). They bear on their face the inscription: “Johanan, the high priest and the congregation of the Jews”; on the reverse is a poppy head between two cornucopias. Similar coins were issued by the other Asmonæan princes.

(5) Herodian Coins.—As Herod the Great was a vassal of Rome, he was permitted to issue copper coins only. These exist in considerable variety. Figure 198 shows one, the face of which is stamped with the image of a vessel with a bell-shaped cover, above which are two palm-branches; on the reverse the words meaning “of King Herod” run around the edge, while a tripod occupies the center. At the left of the tripod is an abbreviation for “year 3”; at the right is a monogram. Several other patterns are known.

Coins of Archælaus, Antipas, Herod Philip (Matt. 14:3; Mark 6:17; Luke 3:19), and of Herod Agrippa I are known. One is shown in [Fig. 200].

(6) Roman Coins.—The most common silver Roman coin was the denarius, rendered in the Authorized Version “penny” and in the Revised Version “shilling.” Its weight varied at different times. In the time of Christ it weighed about 61.3 grains Troy, and was worth 16⅔ cents of American money. As the ministry of Christ occurred in the reign of Tiberius, the tribute money shown to Christ (Matt. 22:19; Mark 12:15-17) was probably a denarius of Tiberius, such as is shown in [Fig. 196]. The denarius was so named because it originally was equivalent to ten asses or small copper coins, but the as was afterward reduced to ¹⁄16 of the denarius. The as is mentioned in Matt. 10:29; Luke 12:6, where A. V. renders it “farthing” and R. V. “penny.” It was worth about a cent. The Roman coin quadrans, or the fourth part of an as, worth about ¼ of a cent, is mentioned in Matt. 5:26; Mark 12:42. It is translated “farthing”; (see [Fig. 199]).

(7) The Widow’s Mite.—Another coin, translated “mite,” is in Greek lepton, “the small one” or the “bit.” It was two of these that the widow cast into the treasury, Mark 12:42,[194] where it is said that two of them equaled a quadrans. The “mite” was, then, of the value of ⅛ of a cent. It was doubtless the smallest coin in circulation, but it has not yet been identified with certainty with any coin that archæology has discovered.

(8) The Piece of Silver.—In Luke 15:8 the Greek drachma is mentioned. It is translated “piece of silver.” The drachma corresponded roughly in value to the denarius. Drachmas had been issued by many different cities and many different kings, and were still in circulation in Palestine in the time of Christ. One still sees in that country today coins of the first Napoleon, and of many other sovereigns who have been long dead, passing from hand to hand as media of value; (see [Fig. 194]).