The Inscriptions of the Shekel
Numismatists have taken special notice of the inscription on the obverse of the coin, “Shekel of Israel,” because it denotes denomination. Generally people could easily determine the denomination of a coin by judging its size and the metal from which it was made. Additionally, coins’ values were subject to change based on their condition, their age, and the distance from their site of minting. For these reasons, it was usually deemed unnecessary to explicitly state a specific denomination for a given coin type, and this was simply excluded from most coin’s designs. The designation, “Shekel of Israel” likely had an overt political intent: to declare to the world that Israel was now minting its own silver in the standard shekel weight, half an ounce. This was also reemphasized with the phrase on the reverse, “Jerusalem the Holy,” which declared that Jerusalem’s coinage should now be seen as the replacement of the Tyrian Shekel, just as Jerusalem should replace Tyre as the holy city.7 (pp. 104-131)
Inscription: "Shekel of Israel" |
Inscription: "Jerusalem the Holy" |
Reverse Inscription: "Of Holy Tyre" |
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| Photo Courtesy of Dr. Bruce Zuckerman | (http://www.jesuswalk.com/lessons/21_37-22_6.htm) |
