CoiiL Before the Babylonian exile (see Deyling, Ob»erv. iii, 222 sq., also in Ugolini Theiaur. xxviii) the Hebrews had and knew no regularly stamped money, but generally made use of a currency in trafilc consisting of uncoined shekels (or talents) of silver, which they washed out to one another (Gen. xxiii, 16 ; Exod. xxii, 17 ; 2 Sam. xviii, 12 ; 1 Kings xx, 89 ; Jer. xxxii, 9 sq. ; comp. Pliny, xxxiii, 13), just as among other nations in most ancient times uncoined metal served for money (iElian, Var, Hist, xii, 10; Strabo, iii, 155), and even to this day the Chinese make their commercial transactions by means of silver bars (Rosenmtlller, Morgenl, i, 98; see Sperling, De nam' mk non cutis, in Ugolihi Theacatr. xxviii). Among the earliest Hebrews, but not afterwards (Crusius, De origimb. pecunia apecore ante ffummvm sign, PetropoL 1748), an ox or other animal (comp. Pliny, xxxiii, 8) was traded instead of cash (see Michaelis, De sido ante exit. Babyl in the Comment. Soc. Gott. ii, 1752, § 1). Yet already in the time of Abraham there circulated in hither Asia, as it seems, silver ingots (n^*^l23p. Gen. xxxiii, 19 ; Josh, xxiv, 82 ; see Gesenins, Thes. H«h. p. 1241 ; Bertheau, p. 24 ; Tnch, Gen. p. 899, 472) of a determined weight, which was probably indicated by marks (Gen. xxiii, 16 ; xliii, 21) stamped upon them (so the Targnm of Jonathan explains the former pas- sage by t<*^»Qp^fi, i. e. rrpayfiaTeia). See Kesitah. i^ven under the regularly organized Hebrew state \all silver pieces (comp. dpyvpia, sUvtrUng) may have
passed in exchange (as among Uieir Phcenkian db^ bors; but see Herod, i, 94; Philostr. Her. x, 1), al- though destitute of natbnal authority (see 1 Sam. h. 8 ; comp. Exod. xxx, 13 ; Lev. xxvii, 3 sq. ; De^ xiv, 26), the bars being weighed only in payment i large sums (comp. 2 Kings xii, 4), although modaa Oriental merchants weigh oat even regnlarij GsaA\ money (Volney, Voyage^ ii, 815). See MxBCHiir. For transportation and preservation, money, ss st t^i day in the East, was deposited in bo^ (2 Kings t,3; xii, 10 ; see Harmor, Observ. iii, 262). See, geooiDr, Bertheau, Getch. d. Isr. p. 14 sq.) See Bao.
After the exile Persian money was most CDROt. especially the daric (q. v.), then Gr»co-Syriaa of tbe Seleucidie (q. v.), till the time (B.C. 143) of prince & mon (q. v.) the Maccabee, who secured from the Sjr- ian monarchs the right of a native ooinage (1 Mkc XV, 6), and issued shekels (q. v.), both whole and hili, of which several (some eight) are still extant The following coin has on one side, in Samaritan, the Dsae of Simon, and some emblems, upon which it b ^m difficult to pronounce, and on the other *' The Deliv- erance of Jerusalem,** with the palm-tree and m vases. There are other coins, bearing on one side tfa
Coin of Simon ^t^M^hflwis.
inscription, in Samaritan," Simon," on the other,'* De- liverance of Jerusalem," which are anpposed to btt«
Probable Coin of Shnon Bar-eochdMS. been stnick by Simon Baroochab, not by Simon V» cabflBus. There are marks on these coins of their btr- ing been struck twice, once by the Roman ao^iitiei. and again by the Jews ; there are alao examplee of
Early Jewish Coin of uncertain Data
Greek and Roman coins of these double types spi^ one upon the other. A leaf and vase appear to be tbe general symbols of the coins stmck in Jndna dariog tiie dominion of the high-priests, and the coins tbeiB- selves are for the most part indifferently exeeoted. Those of Alexander Jannieus are all of bronxe, as sn also the coins of Antigonns ; these last bear the firm- bol of a cornucopia, the type invariably found npa the coins of this prince, f^m the insciiptioiiB on tbe
Coins of AnUgoom.
above coins, it is supposed that Antigonns wished to declare that it was in the capacity of desceudant of Mattathias that he was high-priest The corns of tbc
com
403
COKE
adean kings, from Herod the First, are all of bronze, rith the exception of a silver one assigned to Herod le Third, which is supposed to be nniqne. Of Agrip- a the Second there are many coins, struck after the estmction of Jerusalem, which present on their re- erses portraits of the reigning emperors. The dates Q these c<^ns denote the year of the prince's reign. See each of the kings in their order.) Eventually, o wever, these Bfacca^bnan shekels passed out of circn- ition on account of foreign traffic (being especially applanted by Tyrian mintage, according to Bertheau, ». 45 8q.)< See MomsT-CHANOEBS. In the time of ])irist Greek currency liad mostly prevailed (compn- ed, probably, at a depreciated rate^ of<^hich the fol- owing pieces are mentioned: the droichma (q. v.), rfaich was the unit of value ; the didrachma (q. v.), >r doable drachm {iiipaxfiov, Matt, xvii, 24) ; and he stater (q. v.), or tetradrachm. The smallest coin iras the Iqjiton Q^wrvVy scale, **mite,'* Mark zii, 42; Luke xii, 59), which was the seventh part of a gold )iece OcoXcovc), or half the Roman quadrans or '* fiu*- hing." See Mite. Under the Roman rule the im- [>erial currency naturally obtained in Palestine (see M&it, xxii, 17-21), so that thenceforth the Roman be- romea the standard (so in the Mishna, Baba Afeeia, iv) >f Jewish valuation (see StronglB Barm, and Expos, yf the Gotpelty Append, i). Single coins of this cur- rency named in the N. T. are the following: (a) The deruurius (q. v.), in Greek denarium (drjvapiovj Talm. ^3''^, A. V. incorrectly "penny"), the usual unit of popular estimation, corresponding about to the modem Miimg; (2) The aasariu* (from a$ R* e* oet, brass], which was strictly the ba^ of the Roman monetary system, like the modem pemijf), in Greek OMsarium (aatraptoVf Talmudic usually ^0*^K), of copper (MatL X, 29; Luke xii, 6), originally ^, then ^ the denari- us; it bore the effigy of the empero% during whose reign it was strack. See Pehht. (Comp. Kype, Ob- $erv. i, 57 sq. ; Barth, Dot rSm, At und seme Theiie, Lips. 1834.) (c) The quadrams (or quarter), in Greek kodrantes (KoSpAvrri^j Matt v. 26 ; Mark zii, 42), w^feh was ^ the as, a copper coin. See Fabthiko. The Attic drachma passed as equivalent to the Ro- man denarius. There are also occasional references to other and smaller coins (see the Mishna, Maar ter Skem, ii, 9; iv, 8; Kiddttshm, i, 1; ii, 1), e. g. the obohts (H^73, mea0=4 assaria; ihepondium 01^*7^0) =2 assaria; besides certain antique values, e. g. the tatz (Tqt) = ^ shekel, or i the stater; the penUah^ (il^^'lB)= piece of money in general, etc. (see Bux- tor^ Lex, Talm, ool. 175, 1285, 1754, 1812; Waserus, De mtmmis ff^fraor, L ii, c. 28). Coins were puno- tored and hung as nowadays around children's necks for ornament (Mishna, CheUm, xii, 7). (See Otho, Lex, Babb, p. 481 sq. ; Klemm, De nummis Hdn-ccor, Ttibing. 1730 ; Eisenschmidt, De ponderib, et mensuris veU. Bom, Grme, et Heb, ed. 2, Argent 1787 ; Wurm, De ponder^ Ma, nummormn et mensura, rcOionib, ap. Bom, et Grctc, Stiittg.1821.) SeeMo»T.