Lot 2240

Description

Phoenicia, Tyre, (c.2nd century B.C. - 1st century A.D.), silver shekel or tetradrachm, (14.01 grams), Jerusalem mint, issued A.D. 20-21, obv. Laureate head to right of the beardless Melqarth, rev. eagle standing to left, carrying palm, to r. KP over monogram, on right on left date PMS = 146 (A.D. 20-21), above club, (BMC 238-9, cf.S.5920). Weak in places as usual, otherwise very fine and very scarce from this mint.

'Then one of the 12, called Judas Iscariot, went unto the chief priests and said unto them. What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for 30 pieces of silver' (Matthew 26, 14-15). Since the silver shekel were initially minted in Tyre and then later in Jerusalem they became the only accepted currency in the Jerusalem Temple with a semi-official status. In fact the issue for Jerusalem was probably for this very reason. Historian Michael Grant concludes that payment was made to Judas for his deed, with these coins.