PHILISTIA (PALESTINE). Uncertain mint. Mid 5th century-333 BC. Half Drachm or 1/8 Sheqel (Silver, 14 mm, 2.40 g, 5 h). Male head (the Persian Great King?) to right, wearing jagged crown. Rev. Owl standing facing, wings spread, within stylized rectangular olive wreath; all within incuse square. Gitler & Tal -. Jeselsohn -. Sofaer -. Unpublished and unique, a highly unusual and exciting coin. Darkly toned and very attractive. The obverse struck slightly off center and with minor delamination on the edge, and with a test cut on the reverse, otherwise, good very fine.


This remarkable coin introduces an entirely new type into the Philistine coinage. The obverse shows a male head with prominent nose and ear, wearing a crenellated headdress, most likely a modified rendering of the Persian Great King, as seen, for example, on Gitler & Tal XXIII.10. The reverse bears the celebrated Athenian owl in frontal view, familiar not only from the magnificent Attic dekadrachms (cf. Lot 150 above), but also from a series of Philistine issues (Gitler & Tal III.1Ta and III.3Da).

Enclosing the owl is an unusual rectangular border terminating in ornaments resembling snake heads, probably derived from the double olive spray depicted on Gitler & Tal XIV.28Db. Of particular interest, its weight of 2.40 g identifies the coin as a hemidrachm, equivalent to 1/8 sheqel, a very rare denomination within the Philistine coin series.

We are grateful to Haim Gitler for his valuable comments on this piece.