IDF Soldier Unearths Ancient Coin During Training Exercise in Northern Israel

israelnationalnews

A rare coin bearing the head of the Roman emperor Antonius Pius and dating from 158–159 CE was found during a training exercise by the soldier Ido Gardi.

The well-preserved coin was minted in the city of Geva.

Dr Donald Tzvi Ariel, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority’s Numismatics Department, says “This coin joins only eleven such coins from known locations in the National Treasures Department collection. All the coins were found in northern Israel, from Megiddo and Zippori to Tiberias and Arbel.”

On its obverse, the coin bears the head of the Roman emperor Antoninus Pius, who ruled in 138–161 CE, and the reverse shows the Syrian god MEN (the moon god) with the legend “of the people of Geva Phillipi”, [civic] year 217 (158–159 CE).

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