The Redemption of Zion

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During excavations along the main highway between Jerusalem and Tel Aviv, Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) archaeologists discovered a ceramic moneybox containing 114 bronze coins. Each of the coins features a chalice and the Hebrew inscription “To the Redemption of Zion” on one side and, on the other side, a motif of palm branches and citron fruits with the Hebrew inscription “Year Four”—a reference to the fourth year of the Great Revolt against the Romans (69/70 C.E.). The revolt ended with the fall of Jerusalem and the destruction of the Temple.

“The hoard, which appears to have been buried several months prior to the fall of Jerusalem, provides us with a glimpse into the lives of Jews living on the outskirts of Jerusalem at the end of the rebellion,” said excavation directors Pablo Betzer and Eyal Marco in a press release issued by the IAA. “Evidently someone here feared the end was approaching and hid his property, perhaps in the hope of collecting it later when calm was restored to the region.”

The hoard was excavated from a building constructed in the first century B.C.E. The building was subsequently destroyed in 69 or 70 C.E. during the conclusion of the Great Revolt.