Cache of Silver Coins From The Hasmonean Period Discovered In Israel

You wouldn’t find this coin in your wallet.

Silver coins dated to the Hasmonean period (between 135 and 126 BCE) were hidden in a rock crevice adjacent to the wall of an impressive agricultural estate. They were uncovered during an excavation conducted several years ago at Horvat Ashun, prior to the construction of the Moreshet neighborhood in Modi’in-Maccabim-Re’ut. Following these important finds, an archaeological park open to the public was established a year ago on Ashun Hill, allowing visitors to experience the rich history of the site up close.

The coins are a rare silver hoard from the late Hellenistic period, containing shekels and half-shekels (tetradrachms and didrachms) minted in the city of Tyre bearing the images of King Antiochus VII and his brother Demetrius II. The hoard is amazing evidence that one of the estate’s residents, who saved from his income for months and buried his money, left the house for an unknown reason hoping to return and collect his money, but it seems his luck ran out and he never returned.

“It’s exciting to think that this coin hoard waited for over 2,000 years until we uncovered it,” Abraham Tendler, the excavation director on behalf of the Israel Antiquities Authority, told us. Additionally, numerous bronze coins minted by the Hasmonean rulers were found, bearing the names of the rulers Yohanan, Judah, Jonathan, and Mattathias with the description: “High Priest and Head of the Council of the Jews”.

The findings indicate that the estate continued to operate throughout the Early Roman period.

The excavation found hints that the estates residents also participated in the First Jewish Revolt against the Romans which broke out in 66 CE: coins from this period uncovered at the estate bear the dates “Year Two” and “Year Three” of the revolt, as well as the slogan “Freedom of Zion”. The estate continued to operate even after the destruction of the Second Temple in 70 CE. “It seems that the local residents did not give up hope for independence from Rome, and they prepared well for fighting in the Bar Kokhba revolt,” says Tendler. “During the excavation of the estate, we saw how, in preparation for the revolt, the estates residents filled the row of living quarters adjacent to the outer wall of the building with large stones, thus creating a fortified wall. We also discovered hiding systems carved into the rock beneath the estate’s floors. These systems connected water cisterns, storage pits, and hiding rooms through tunnels. In one of the nearby excavation areas, a beautifully impressive ritual bath (mikveh) was uncovered; when we deepened the excavation of the mikveh an entrance to an extensive hiding system was revealed in which many findings from the time of the Bar Kokhba revolt were found.” Coins minted by the Bar Kokhba rebels were also found, bearing the names of the revolt leader, Simon, with the slogan “For the Freedom of Jerusalem” and the name of another revolt leader, Eleazar the Priest, with the inscription “Year One of the Redemption of Israel”.

The public is invited to come and see the hoard at the “Hasmonean Heritage Museum” in Modi’in!